Susanna Lynn Johnson: Judith G. Klausner: Artist Interview

The first moment that I stumbled upon the work of Judith G. Klausner, I was taken and inspired. Her current series, From Scratch, transcends the revival of embroidery in contemporary art to employ the medium in a way that truly engages the conceptual power of the traditional technique. There are other contemporary artists who use embroidery to create their images: Maurizio Anzeri, Stacey Page, Severija Incirauskaite-Kriauneviciene, and Daniel Kornrumpf, to name a few. But I find Klausner's work to be the most humorous, and was excited to find an artist who works with materials that are non-archival, and yet invests in them an extraordinary amount of labor and thought.

I had the opportunity to interview Klausner for a class this quarter, and it was the greatest pleasure to hear her contemplative responses to my questions. She had many cool things to say about her work, from their conception to physical creation, as well as her own influences and advice for blossoming artists. I have included some images of her work included in the series From Scratch (courtesy of her artist website). She has many more beautiful and delicately-constructed pieces available to view on her site, so be sure to check it out!

What is the reasoning behind your materials? Enjoyment, conceptual, or a combination of the two?

JGK I would definitely say its a combination. I've long explored unusual media, and I like to reinterpret the everyday. Food and craft are both so inextricably bound with issues of gender, which are deeply important to me, so these materials seemed like a natural choice. My earlier work with insects definitely came from a deep aesthetic appreciation that was confusingly unusual, and that I felt a strong desire to share.

How do your concepts develop? Do you keep a regular sketchbook, write out your ideas, or record them some other way?

JGK I've always felt like I should keep a sketchbook, but to be honest my drawing skills have never been strong enough for it to be helpful to me (people often assume that all artists can draw, but I'm living proof that it isn't the case!) I do keep a journal of ideas, mostly just jotted down as thoughts, half-sentences and lists.

What kind of source material do you use to create your work?

JGK For the Oreo Cameos, I like to look at a variety of images of antique cameos while I work. I've done a lot of figurative work since I began sculpting many years ago, and I find I am most comfortable letting each person take shape as I sculpt them. While a couple of the cameos were based loosely on the iconography of mythological figures, the faces and personalities were not predetermined.
For the egg and butter toast embroideries, I started out with photographs and broke them down into blocks of color to translate them into thread.
I tend to like looking at a wide range of related imagery as I work on a piece, so Google image search is my friend!

Do you tend to use and explore a variety of media at once, or stick to one at a time? Do you work on several projects at once?

JGK I usually stick to one media-theme at a time; I think my brain gets into a creative groove within the parameters of those materials. That said, "medium" for me is often a broad category; There are quite a number of types of insects, and nearly as many packaged foods!
In recent years, I've tried to stick with only one or two projects at once, so that I end up with fewer unfinished projects.
Sometimes, though, I'll be in the middle of one piece when inspiration will strikes for something new, and I can't argue with inspiration!

"Food and craft are both so inextricably bound with issues of gender, which are deeply important to me, so these materials seemed like a natural choice."

What artists have influenced you?

JGK That's a deceptively hard question to answer. I grew up going to art museums, and unfortunately it wasn't until I was fairly old that I started paying attention to the names of the artists (which is strange, since even as a child I wanted to be an artist). I think that everything I saw influenced me in some way.
I can say that some artists whos' works have recently impacted me (and give me things to aspire to) are Tara Donavan (there was a beautiful exhibit of her work at the ICA Boston a couple of years ago that was one of the best shows I've ever seen) who has truly elevated the mundane to breathtaking heights; Pat Keck, who I deeply respect for making every part of each work by hand; Charles LeDray for the incredible level of craftsmanship evident in every facet of his work; and Dr. Seuss, who taught me from very early on that art could be clever and political.

What advice would you give to a student/emerging artist?

JGK I would certainly still consider myself an "emerging artist," and I think one of the things that has been the most helpful for me has been availing myself of the opportunities presented by the internet. Its a brave new world of social media, and it allows for sharing work internationally in a way that was inconceivable for emerging artists even 15 years ago. Many popular blogs have easily available protocol for submissions - submit to anything and everything! The worst that happens is nothing.

Interview by Susanna Lynn Johnson