Two unique artists shared exhibition space in the Johnson Center for the Arts last week.
Chintia Kirana’s and Mary Holman Johnson’s, “In Time” exhibit displayed in the main front rooms of the Johnson Center was a complex and abstract representation of the transient nature of time.
Large, striking canvases stretched the long wall. Smaller, dark, geometric paintings lined the others. In a small room to the side, a cascade of eggshells hung from the ceiling surrounded by mirrors, creating a striking image.
“I've always been interested in materials, and I try to focus on materials that represent my identity,” Kirana said. “In this case, I've been collecting since 2012.
“My parents own a Chinese restaurant in Montgomery, so I started collecting there because every day after they're making their egg drop soup or hot and sour soup, there’s always eggshells leftover.
“At that time, I was really interested in objects that could symbolize life – the difficulty of life, the fragility of life, but also the beauty of it, and I thought eggs could represent all of that.”
Kirana also collects carbon and uses it to make paint. Kirana said she is extremely fascinated with the passage and elusiveness of time. She said collecting has become a way for her to materialize time.
In the basement of the Johnson Center, delicate jewelry, architectural arrangements, complex gelli plate prints and intricate photographs were framed amid the exposed brick and moody lighting.
Johnson, a Troy native, has been creating art since she was young. Her father, Holman Johnson, was a photographer, so she spent her summers hand-colorizing the photographs he took.
Johnson attended Auburn University and pursued a degree in interior design, and then had a 35-year career in interior design. During this time, she collected many alternative materials to use in the creation of jewelry.
“I started making jewelry in 2011 as kind of a break from my interior design career and it just kind of took off, you know, because every piece was one-of-a-kind, and it was more about making a statement about the materials,” Johnson said.
In 2021, Johnson suffered massive nerve damage in her left hand due to the viral and painful infection, shingles.
“I can no longer hold the tools to make jewelry,” Johnson said. “I had to find another outlet to be creative because I thought, you know, as long as I can see and my hands work, I want to create.
“That's when I started the gelli plate printing process.”
Johnson said her inspiration for her pieces comes largely from nature. She also said she says it’s incredibly important for students to have a creative outlet.
“Oh my gosh – it's like art therapy,” Johnson said. “You know, it's good for the soul.
“I think people say, ‘Oh, I can't do art.’ Well, I think you just have to jump in - experiment with a lot of different things until you find something that you're passionate about and you have fun with.
“But for students, I think [art] is a great stress reliever to get involved in something creative. It helps you look at things in a different way.”
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