Pepper Johnson (Peppertreearts)

Pepper Johnson

Ceramics / Glass / Jewelry / Mixed Media / Paper Arts

Every artist has a muse of ideas that affects the focus of their work. For me there are three, my spiritually is my holy instant of peace with art as the vehicle to release all the energy and feeling that could creates stress. As I work, I enjoy the calm of inter peace with myself and I use my family and social history as a means of release. That would be cultural and family history. As a child growing up in my little community, history of self was not the focal point. But being a curious child, I wondered who I am in this society and at that time the door was not open to understanding my culture.

In the second muse I try to express in my work, the need to understand self and eliminate cultural deprivation. And this gift was given to me by my mother, Ginger and my great aunt Jessie. It was not until I reached graduate school that my great aunt told me highlights of my matriarchal history dating back to 1797. My observations of these ladies from early childhood showed me the independent will of these ladies. So to watch, learn and create was an everyday experience for me.

And the final muse is my use of materials. Each work from the peppertree is an representation of my spirit and family experiences to use various materials that express my feelings and challenges my soul. I have worked with so many master artists that it extends the palette of my work. And I hope the feelings, emotion and challenges of my life are expressed in the materials I use, which envelops a feeling of inter peace. For example, when I use colors and materials, I think of my ancestry and cultural roots and the use of bright materials to represent the environment in which they lived.