Nichole Johns’s art has a distinctive personal style that portrays mental disabilities and states of mind through use of ceramics, paper mache, and wire. Due to her fascination of folklore she often combines these states of mind with the abilities and habits of mythological creatures. Recently she has created her own horrific monsters that represent the hardships she is enduring.
She often says, “I want people to be able to connect with my work in an emotional way and know that they are not alone.”
For the past two years she has created designs for Bree’s Boutiquein Jonesboro Arkansas. She was also commissioned to create a piece for students in Arkansas Department of Game and Fish on Astate Jonesboro campus. After graduation she plans to work at Melt Art Studio in her hometown of McCrory Arkansas.
“When I was little, my father was an alcoholic and drug addict so bad things were always happening around me. There were even quite a few times my life was threatened. As a result of my family situation, I have Major Depression, Major Anxiety, Insomnia, PTSD, and I am Bipolar. In order to escape from that reality, I would always read books my mom had lying around the house. The main content of these books were mythological creatures like dragons and unicorns. In college, I took multiple folklore classes learning more about myths and legends from many different cultures.
In my work I find a way to match mental disabilities, thoughts, or feelings, to the abilities or habits of mythological creatures. On some occasions I even create my own creatures to represent these thoughts. Doing this helps me release some of the stress and pent up emotions that haunt me from my past.”
My Demons, Ceramic, 5.5 x 3.5 x 5.5, 7 x 4.5 x 5.5, 5 x 5 x 4 inches
Anubis from Afterlife, ceramic, 12 x 9 x 18.5 inches
Canopic Jars from Afterlife, ceramic, 2 pieces (3 x 3 x 8) 2 pieces (3 x 3 x 8.5) inches
Depression symptoms generally aren’t visible. They can tear someone apart and many people don’t know how to ask for help. Meditating or having a familiar scent can help ground you so I made my own incense burners. The kitsune’s eyes are missing and they are bright colors to represent how someone can be happy on the outside but hide the bad emotions on the inside. I chose the kitsune because it is said that the more tails a kitsune has, the older, wiser, and more powerful it is. I hope that each day I can grow more tails and become stronger and wiser from each obstacle I overcome.
