Craft Works Dialogue

In the 6th special edition interview for the Ground Light Sound collaborative project I sit down with the amazing Alejandra Almuelle. A native of Arequipa, Peru, Alejandra has been turning out some truly stunning figurative sculpture in recent years and it was a real honor to work with her. Enjoy our sweet convo from the kitchen table.

Please join lighting designer Mark Figueredo and I as we sit down for an in depth conversation at the kitchen table at Cloud Tree. I met Mark, who moved to Austin a year or so back from New York, while putting on the Secret Lighting show last year. Listen in and learn about Marks interesting journey from master electrician to fine lighting guru.

This is the 4th in a special series of artists joining me for Ground Light Sound. Ryan is maybe my favorite potter of all time. And he's a good friend. And he really loves Louie. I am stoked to collaborate with him for GLS and we had a blast discussing his work and his life. Enjoy.

This is the third in a special series of interviews with my collaborating artists for the Ground Light Sound project. Though I will be collaborating with Adele on lighting for the project, she is a talented multi media artist with a robust drive to make and design. Listen in as we discuss her background growing up in Austin, her thoughts on quilting, her discovery of an ancient knife at a archeological dig as a kid & more!

Pull up a chair, open your ears and prepare your mind for a great conversation with one sweet human. In Ep. 29 of CWD I sit down with sound artist and percussionist Chris Cogburn. Chris also happens to be my grant writer as well as the organizer and master mind of the No Idea Festival which just had its 15th year in Austin this past February. Furthermore, Chris has played a major role in helping me conceive of and initiate the Ground Light Sound collaborative art project and is one of six artists involved in the project. Listen in as we discuss all these things and more! Find out more about No Idea Festival at http://noideafestival.com/ and also check out some recent work by Chris and a trio he plays with in Mexico City here: https://anahuac.bandcamp.com/

In Ep. 28 I sit down with drummer and sound artist Lisa Cameron. Lisa is one of six artists I am collaborating with for Ground Light Sound, a collaborative art project and opening funded in part by the City of Austin Cultural Arts Division. The opening will be September 28th at Cloud Tree on east 5th in Austin. Lisa Cameron played drums professionally with the band Brave Combo in Denton from 1977 until she moved to Austin in 1981. She went on to play with Roky Erickson, the Lotions, Glass Eye , Squat Thrust, Three Day Stubble, Daniel Johnston, Moist Fist, JSAS (Jherri Siggenfeld's Atrophied Sac), ST 37, and numerous others throughout the Eighties and Nineties. She has been working additionally with experimental music since the late 70's and its a real honor to be working with her.

This is a 3 minute long example excerpt of the podcast Craft Works Dialogue hosted by Brian David Johnson.

This is a talk I recorded with Leslie in her home town of Springville, Utah quite a ways back and thought I'd never get to post it so am super happy to do so. We discuss her back ground as an artist growing up in Utah and how she found her way to full time oil painting. Check out more of her work at http://lesliedukeart.com/. Enjoy, its a good one!

Listen in as I sit down with the sweet and mercurial Adam Young of Austin. This is a special edition of CWD as it is a companion interview to go along with The Secret Series, three large group art shows I am currently hosting at Cloud Tree in East Austin. Adam's piece "First Light" was one of the hits of the show and we sat down to discuss it along with his career and what a legendary Austin skater he is :). You can see some photos of his lamp piece First Light from the Secret Lighting show here: https://www.bdj.gallery/blog/2017/5/9/first-light You can see more about Adam's work here : http://oldcrowaustin.com/. To find out more about the Secret Series go here: https://www.bdj.gallery/blog/2017/5/7/the-secret-series. Thanks!

We are back! After an almost 8 month break CWD has returned with a talk recorded in 2015 with San Antonio musician Erik Sanden of the band Buttercup. Brian and Erik go back almost 22 years so listen in as they discuss Erik's growth as a musician, the band that Brian used to manage in the early 90's that Erik was a member of and mucho more!!! To find out more about Erik and his San Antonio art rock band go to @http://www.buttercult.com/content/home/.

Listen in as I sit down with old friend the hilarious and warm Patty Cater of Austin and discuss her path from growing up in Houston to metal work , cooking and more. She is an amazing, special woman. Enjoy!

My talk with Aaron Michalovic of austin was super fun and inspiring. Listen in to hear about Aaron's background in timber framing and how it influences his current work. Oh and he has possibly the coolest grandfather on the planet. Check it out to find out more. Go to http://www.michalovicwoodart.com/ to see more of Aaron's work.

In this grand episode Brian sits down for a delightful and in depth conversation with Austin based multi media artist, illustrator and designer Victoria Corbett. Learn about Corbetts upbringing in the UK and her background in antiques which led her to a life in Texas of all places. More of her work can be seen here : http://www.victrolastudio.com/.

Brian sits down with New York based comedian Mark Normand as he visits Austin for SXSW. Listen in as they discuss what its like to come up with and tell jokes for a living, Mark's upbringng in the Big Easy, how Bugs Bunny is ripping off Groucho Marx and much more. Find out more about Mark here http://marknormandcomedy.com/

In CWD 20 Brian is in Greenpoint, Brooklyn and gets a chance to sit down with the talented Libby Vanderploeg and discuss her work as an artist, illustrator and graphic designer. Check out Libby's work at http://www.libbyvanderploeg.com/. Cheers!

Sit in with Brian and Joel for the first CWD of 2015. Learn about Joel's unplanned entry into his vocation and how his degree in art history informs his much beloved design work as well as the importance of point of view.

In Ep. 18 of CWD Brian has a great talk with good friend and brilliant Austin furniture designer and maker Mark Macek. Mark has been working for close to 20 years in Austin and is definitely one of the best in the biz in the local scene. Mark also teaches a furniture design course at the University of Texas School of Architecture where he also graduated from with a degree in architecture. Look for this talk to be a mere prelude to the depths that will be plumbed in further episodes as Mark will definitely be a returning guest.

In this episode I have a wonderful talk with design blogger and photographer Adrienne Breaux. Ms. Breaux is the current weekend editor at the famed design blog Apartment Therapy as well as a contributor to such fine publications as UPPERCASE magazine, Austin Monthly Home and more. Originally from Louisiana, Adrienne has resided in Austin since the early aughts. She has a great story about how she got into design blogging as well as a fresh and interesting take on the Austin design scene, and some insight about working for one of the most influential interior design blogs on the web.

The first episode for summer 2014 edited and published from my summer work retreat in Boulder, Colorado features the always interesting and super sweet Ethan Azarian. Please join us to hear about Ethan's formative years being raised by two artists in Cabot, Vermont and his path as both a painter as well as musician singer song writer. Ethan sheds some interesting light on his father aka Tom Banjo, someone I hope to land on the show in the fall. To find out more info about Ethan and view his work and hear some tunes go here. Enjoy!

Come sit in with Brian as he has the last conversation of 2103 on the road in Boulder, Colorado with photographer Bear Guerra. Bear's work is primarily focused on humanitarian, environmental and sociial justice issues. He was recently awarded a Ted Scripps Fellowship in Environmental Journalism from CU Boulder for the academic year 2013-2014. In 2012, Bear was chosen as a Blue Earth Alliance project photographer for his ongoing project "La Carretera: Life Along Peru's Interoceanic Highway". His amazing body of work can be viewed at http://bearguerra.com/.

Sit in for this wild and wooly 2 hour funathon as Brian and filmmaker Ben Steinbauer discuss Ben's wildly popular indie doc Winnebago Man, the art of making a good documentary, philosophical musings on life and much much more. To find out more about Ben and his filmmaking just google him already! He's all over the nets this guy. Even has his own wikipedia page. Sheesh. Enjoy :)

Bringing it back home to Austin for the first episode recorded in the new year. Sit in with Brian as he goes deep with artist Court Lurie in her East Austin studio. Let Court inspire you with the journey that led her to a successful and sustainable career as a maker of art. Originally from Chicago, Court has also resided in New Mexico prior to landing in Austin. She has been exhibiting nationally for over 15 years. Learn more about Court and see her work here.

Join Brian as he has a more than pleasant chat with composer Carolyn O'Brien in her kitchen in Evanston, Illinois. Already an award winning composer, Carolyn is currently getting her doctorate in composition at Northwestern. Listen and laugh along (she's quite the card) and learn about her path as a musician, teacher, artist and composer.

Join Brian in his second interview from the road in Brooklyn with author Elizabeth Crane. Her debut novel We Only Know So Much was released last summer and she is also the author of other numerous short story collections. The craft of writing and some of its inner workings are brought into the light as well as Elizabeth's fascinating childhood growing up in New York City, the daughter of a professional opera singer. For more info about her work go to http://www.elizabethcrane.com/.

Check it out as Brian sits down with his first out of towners! The wonderful sisters Stovel, Leah and Krista, were kind enough to pop by for a chat while in town for the Renegade Craft Fair. A fascinating discussion ensued as the girls told Brian about there upbringing on Widby Island and the in and outs of a burgeoning family business. Together with Avery Bloom the sisters own both Nell and Mary and Make It Good, which produce screen printed textile goods on fabric sourced in the USA. Nell and Mary's focus is home decor while Make it good is a clothing line.

Craft Works Dialogue hits the road as Brian sits down with Brooklyn based artist Ben Brandt. Ben primarily identifies as a sculptor though he is a painter and woodworker as well. Join them as they delve deep into Ben's past and brain to divine the transformative nature of art, myth as it relates to life and art and how being selfish ..... may not always be such a bad thing. All this and more suffused in the sounds from the street of Clinton Hill.

Join Brian as he sits down with artist and wood worker Aldo Valdez Bohm at his Delta Lumber mill studio. Learn how Aldo's work as a potter also informed his work as a wood turner and more. See more of Aldo's work here: http://www.avalbo.com/avalbo/Home.html.

Check it out as Brian has a splendid talk with artist Debra Broz in her Austin studio. Learn about how Debra turns back time through her work with ceramic restoration, growing up in the middle of nowhere and some seriously great discussion on the importance of art as, well, the basis of everything. Pretty cool.

In Episode 6 Brian sits down with fellow Splintoid and long time studio mate Andy St. Martin who is a visual artist and fine art painter based out of Austin. Listen in as Brian explores what makes a man tick (other than an artificial heart valve)who has dedicated the majority of his life to painting and making art.

Listen in on the second half of my conversation with Austin based furniture maker Michael Yates. In the second half of this fun filled conversation recorded last fall we get deep into the weeds of the business of custom furniture making. Enjoy!

Join Brian in Episode 4 as he visits with glass blower Morgan (Graff)Bogart as they debate glass burns vs. saw cuts and the true composition of glass. As Morgan points out, we are surrounded by this beautiful yet fragile material and yet we rarely consider its origins. Learn about this , Morgans many summers at the renowned Pilchuck Glass School and more.

In this premiere edition of CWD Brian sits down with craftsman designer Eric Billig. Eric's primary medium is concrete though he is also a fabulous wood worker. Listen in as Brian and Eric discuss the ups and downs involved with the business (or as Eric aptly puts it , "lifestyle") of being a modern day craftsman.

In episode 2 I sit down with Kevin Collins of Blue Genie Art and discuss the history of Blue Genie and BG Art Bazaar, its origins at Black Mountain, Kevins early childhood experience of almost drowning at the The Springs and more.

Michael and I had so much fun we couldn't stop talking so this is Part 1. Look for Part 2 on Episode 5. Listen in as Michael and I discuss the learning curve of being a furnituremaker, his background in electrical engineering and experience with Aggie bonfires. Fun fun fun.