THANOS JOHNSON
1922-2004
by
Tucker Farris
Photo -Teri Havens
Nestled in his log cabin compound high above the town of Marble, Thanos Johnson practiced the magic of ceramic pottery, becoming an integral thread in the post-war history of the Crystal Valley as well as imparting an unparalleled mastery of the craft of ceramics to the valley and beyond.
Born in 1922 in Howell, Michigan, Thanos entered into service in World War II as part of the elite 10th Mountain Division, training close to Marble and across the high-altitude landscapes of the Western Slope (such as Camp Hale near Leadville). Having taken an interest in Colorado, he returned in 1945 following the end of the war and purchased his log cabin above Marble for $100 in back taxes and made the town his new home base of operations and pottery studio along with his wife, Jane and his four children, Demetrios, Aristides, Thana and Kosta. Over the years through their adventures, the family would always endeavor to spend their summers in Marble.
Called the “God Potter of Marble” by locals and publications alike (for both his long flowing white beard and his deft hands at the pottery wheel), he referred to pottery as “A form of satisfying expression” stating that “Clay has been with man from the caves to the moon, so it is very vital to man both aesthetically and technically.” His work was regularly featured in his annual art shows in Marble, and elsewhere. He traveled extensively to the East and to his ancestral homeland of Greece to study pottery and incorporated many various styles of ceramic artistry into his craft.
Photos from the Thanos Johnson Family Collection
Among his many accolades, was a nearly single-handed effort to preserve and display the dying craft of Korean folk pottery (known as Onggi), which in the 1970s, was very close to disappearing as an art form. The craft involves creating intricate pots for the preservation of food for long winters. It had long been treated in Korea and elsewhere as a very simple utilitarian form of pottery, but Thanos was one of the few Western potters who recognized its inherent beauty as a dying art form.
He first encountered this style of pottery on one of his expeditions in the 1970s where, with Smithsonian ethnographer Ralph Rinzler, he went to photograph and study Korean folk pottery in the remote countrysides. He returned to Marble with a passion for this unique style of pottery and between then and his passing in 2004, he worked to hone his mastery of theOnggistyle and to educate students and the public at large about the unique methods. His work with the Smithsonian was an invaluable contribution to the history of pottery and to the broader understanding of ancient folkways in art.
His work in Korea earned him the prestigious title of “Living National Treasure of Korea” granted by a former national director of the National Museum of Korea. He lectured widely in Korea, Greece (his ancestral homeland), South Africa, and curated major ceramics exhibitions of his own work in Japan. Once when asked of his teaching career, he quipped that he had never needed to apply for a job, saying “they just came and found me wherever I was.”
Aside from creating pottery and serving as an expert on Smithsonian expeditions, Thanos also took in many students over the years, where in the cozy atmosphere of his home studio, he taught the mastery of his craft to young and old students alike. As professor Emeritus of fine art (and previously being the head of ceramics) at The College of Marin in Kentfield, California, and local teacher in Marble, his storied life of adventure became the medium through which he was able to teach the art of ceramics to a generation of artists within the valley and beyond.
His work highlights one of the most resonant threads of life in the Crystal Valley, that it has always been a home to world class artists, intellectuals and creatives who, through their humble experience of life along the Crystal not only strive out into the world to make their marks, but they also work tirelessly to bring their passion into the veins of their homes here in the mountains. Thanos curated a cozy and welcoming studio gallery in his home, and often welcomed members of the public into the fold to see the entire process from lump of clay to glazed works of art. His story is one of those threads of the history of the valley that grants it its unique character: a place where history, creativity, individuality and freedom of expression flow as freely as the river. His work in teaching and creating art is inextricably tied to the Crystal Valley, and they will continue to inspire, inform and enlighten visitors and locals as they make their own histories here.
Tucker Farris is a professor of sociology at Colorado Mountain College and Colorado State University-Pueblo. He serves on the Redstone Historical Society Board and is a fifth-generation local of the Crystal Valley.