We recently connected with John Klosterman and have shared our conversation below.

Hi John, thanks for joining us today. Learning the craft is often a unique journey from every creative – we’d love to hear about your journey and if knowing what you know now, you would have done anything differently to speed up the learning process.

As an artist, I have made a nostalgic and symbolic decision to incorporate the medium of woodcut. Growing up in my rural southern household, much of my identity and learning was founded upon honing skills of physically demanding labor. This same mentality transitioned over into my origins as a printmaker with my love of woodblock carving. Instead of the turn of a wrench, it became the carving of a block with a gouge. The combination of artistic skill and laborious intensity resonates with my own identity.

The symbolic decision to use carving is twofold:
First, it refers to my origins as a very raw Printmaker. Second, it can be interpreted as a symbolic decision to revisit some of the origins of my mental “tools” or ways I work/process information. I found a sense of comfort and safety in the repetitive nature of the tasks given to me to assist my uncles and grandfather. Acknowledgment and reward increased the furious obsession over otherwise menial tasks. I believe that this ritualistic obsession with repetition lends itself to my mark-making tendencies when carving a block.

John, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I developed a fondness for machines and all the tinkering that came along with them. My grandfather’s shop was my church where I came to worship. My love of tinkering now takes on a two-dimensional form when I transfer ink to paper. Instead of the turn of a wrench, it is now the carving of a block with a gouge. Layers of each print, much like parts of a car are assembled in a manner that creates a functioning vehicle for the message of each piece.

I use my work as a means for a thorough self-examination. The use of family photographs and memories allows me the opportunity to derive meaning from my upbringing in the rural backwoods of Alabama into an artist. I use vintage-inspired iconography as a reflection of my surroundings growing up as a child raised by grandparents. I realize that while I may not work amongst engines and diagrams still, I still surround myself with similar structures. Just like the never-ending cycle of upkeep on machinery, I consistently ply my trade into each piece of art in search of some form of rigid idealization. My goal is to know if I have built my own “vessel” to plan.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

I find it helpful to use my work as a means to explore, examine, and rationalize difficult concepts. I employed this process soon after my diagnosis with an anxiety disorder. This recent revelation is what fueled my MFA body of work, “Manifestations”. I focused on my struggle with anxiety, specifically the compulsive thoughts and repetitive actions that characterized it. I use a combination of found objects, family photographs, and imagery from various sources in my work. I want to depict the fear and dismay that I felt when I realized that I could not remain in control of my mind and body. I decided to use carvings of vultures, various birds of prey, and rotting corpses to depict the omnipresent feeling of my anxiety. I gave this feeling, in other words, a physical form. I felt it hover over my head. I felt it glare at me from the shadows as though it were always waiting for me. I also use family photographs and chemically transferred landscapes to hint at my anxiety’s possible origins. My appropriation of these captured moments allows me to revisit places or relationships that were a part of my upbringing. I print repetitive frame-by-frame stills and exhaustingly detailed diagrams of objects and landscapes. These transparent diagrams represent my struggle with obsessive-compulsive thoughts.

This diagnosis has allowed me the opportunity not only to be more introspective but also to examine my family and the relationships I have with them. After researching OCD, I believe that my struggle with anxiety, specifically the compulsive thoughts and repetitive actions that characterize it stems from a lifelong pattern that might have been established during the developmental phases of childhood. That being said, the research, also indicated that this affliction could lead to growth and constructive development. I believe that my repetitive attempts at fighting various symptoms of my issue have now morphed into an asset that can be used to enhance my productivity.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

The most rewarding part of what I do is not only the ability to self-reflect but the ability to teach and guide a new generation of artists.

In the classroom, I encourage a friendly environment that allows all students to engage in debate, dialog, and experimentation based upon each student’s collective experiences and innovation from artistic development. I see education as an opportunity for students to learn from one another, and their community, and enter into a world that they possibly did not know existed. My goal is to help students develop their creativity and develop their life experiences into engaging and sophisticated bodies of work that communicate their individual narratives and experiences in a meaningful way.

In my opinion, it is essential for students to understand the meaning of their works not only within the colloquial understanding but on a broader contextual scale. I require students to study art historical and contemporary practitioners of printmaking and to pull out the complex ways that their works are connected to these forms of representation. I allow for flexible decision-making that can be adapted as students gain knowledge, conduct their research, and expand their perspectives.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: klosterphobic_artist

Image Credits
All owned photos.