Artistic Radiance: Connection Affections

When Clarissa Knighten first started making jewelry it was as a form of therapy. She used the physicality of wire and beads to calm her mind and allow her to focus on something productive. Today, the artist has made complex, winding wearable art that can be found in museums, runways, and even TV screens. I got the opportunity to view her work in person at Kansas City Kansas Community College’s (KCKCC) Art Gallery. The pieces in this exhibit show how she elevates basic jewelry materials into beautiful pieces. 

One of my personal favorite components of Knighten’s art is how all the materials are the kinds of things you could find in a high school art class. She tends to avoid expensive materials, which allows the effort of her art to shine. In one of her most breathtaking pieces titled Connection Affection 2, she uses branches, copper wire, and pearlescent beads to evoke an insect's eggs laying upon a web. It contrasts the unnatural shine of plastic and copper with the natural scene of a spider's web delicately lying between branches. In one of her wearable pieces, Connection Affection 1, Knighten uses nearly the same materials to create a completely different vibe. The exhibition flows together and I was very impressed to see this unique and inspiring collection from a small community college gallery. I got a chance to talk to KCKCC’s Gallery Coordinator, Shai Perry, about this exhibit and what she's got coming up next. 

“It takes a long time to get a show like this put together; I asked her (Knighten) about doing a show like this at least 3 years ago. So, she started building. I liked, from a curator's standpoint, all the different textures and mediums used here, how the pieces on the wall have shadows that almost look like lightning. I love the nature and the intricate crocheting of the wire; it's a very special technique she uses there. I really wanted to have her art here from the moment I met her.”

I asked Perry about how she chooses artists for exhibits. As someone who makes a point of visiting school galleries on any campus I tour, I found it a little challenging to find the gallery, but I was pleasantly surprised at how different the work shown here was.

 “I like to bring things that are unique. When I first started here 10 years ago, it was like landscape paintings, and that was it. I want students here to know that there's more to Art than the basics.”

Before I left, I wanted to know what the KCKCC gallery was planning next. As I came to this show on the last day, very fashionably late. The next gallery exhibit is in partnership with the musical arts branch's upcoming show, Rag-a-Jazz. The show will feature Grammy award-winning artists playing a fusion of jazz and classical Indian music. To complement the show, the gallery will have an exhibit featuring the works of three local artists that focus on their Asian heritage, titled Darshan: The Way of Seeing. 

This gallery surprised me with not only its quality of exhibit but also with its heart. So, if you are near KCKCC, I highly recommend visiting the Art Gallery.