Earth’s Alchemy Artist Talk
Saturday, February 19th
Earth’s Alchemy Artist Talk featuring Rock Johsen – moderated by Cassie Garner, Director of Gamut Gallery & Ceramicist Carter Casmaer.
We invite you to start your day out with Rock’s two favorite things; art & science. Join us for a conversation with exhibiting solo artist, Rock Johnsen, moderator Cassie Garner & Ceramicist Carter Casmaer. Listening to Rock Johnsen engage with patrons that came to his exhibiting opening left the room with an overall feeling of awe. Rock’s passion for science and art combined for the ultimate experience our all attendees. We guarantee you will not want to miss the opportunity to listen to Rock dive into his biggest project to date. This will be a limited capacity event and we recommend getting your presale to reserve your seat.
Earth’s Alchemy has turned Gamut Gallery into a transcendent winter-scaped wonderland. Just like no two snowflakes are alike, each piece featured in this exhibit is one of a kind, inspiring us to remember science in everyday life and its inherent influence on societal progress and inclusivity. Rock’s work represents the certainty of constant evolution at an atomic level, the diversity that stems from these atomic interactions, and their eventual influence on our collective appreciation and interest in expressing ourselves through art.
Learn more about Earth’s Alchemy: www.gamutgallerympls.com
ARTIST TALK
Saturday, February 19th, 2022 • 10am
Moderated by Cassie Garner, Director of Gamut Gallery & Ceramicist Carter Casmaer, followed by open Q & A
• 30 person limited capacity event
• FREE pre-sales available and recommended
• All tickets are will-call at the door
• Masks required indoors
• This event is FREE in thanks to the Artist Initiative grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board
MN State Board Art Grant.
Rock Johnsen is a fiscal year 2021 recipient of an Artist Initiative grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board. This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through a grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund.
Rock Johnsen is a scientist and potter living in Minneapolis, MN who grew up in Kansas and Missouri. He obtained a Bachelor’s degree from Pittsburgh University in studio arts with a focus on ceramics and chemistry. Rock’s work explores concepts of duality that he has been perpetually confronted with growing up as a queer person of mixed race in the United States. He uses human anatomy and creatures to examine our comfort level with functional items and also explores the links between chemistry and geology in ceramic glaze.
His unique crystal growing process is really the recreation of an environment. Rock uses a kiln to simulate the earth’s mantle. Over several hours, between 1800-2200 degrees Fahrenheit, the mixture of basic elements transition to a liquid state. While the vessel’s surface is still fluid, zinc and silica atoms attract one another due to their natural polarities, migrating through the liquid to form larger molecules. With each new piece, Rock mimics environmental conditions by making slight adjustments to the temperature and holding times of the ceramic media; the chemical properties of each element emerge from the crystal solution as the final size, shape, and reflection of each piece becomes an individual representation of material science.
Carter Casmaer is a Doctor by day and ceramicist by night. He first learned ceramics in his hometown of St. Louis and has ten years of experience working with clay. He aims to make beautiful, functional, affordable pieces that are a pleasure to interact with one’s daily life.
Cassie Garner is a graphic designer, art curator, and gallerist living and working in Minneapolis. A founder of Gamut Gallery, Cass began as a graphic designer and has grown with the gallery over time. Three years into business when the gallery was forced to relocate, she joined the ownership team and became the gallery manager where she applied her many years of retail and customer service experience. In the spring of 2018, Cass transitioned into the role of Gallery Director and now leads operations and project management for exhibitions and events. Her other passions include collecting art, dancing, making connections, and spending time in her Southside home.