Bio
Cara Kearns is an artist with aphantasia* who lives in Baton Rouge, Louisiana with her husband Jeff. She’s been hooked on art since the 2nd grade when she won a Frisbee in a drawing contest. After working solely in ceramics since 1993, Cara recently reinvented her artwork, teaching herself to embroider, crochet, and weave.
Cara’s award winning work has been shown in Louisiana, Maryland, Arkansas, Florida, and California. The Arts Council of Greater Baton Rouge has one of her art pieces in their permanent collection.
*Aphantasia is defined by Merriam-Webster as the inability to form mental images of real or imaginary people, places, or things.
Statement
“You aren’t drawing what you see. You’re drawing what you think you know,” said my first life-drawing instructor in 1991. I did not comprehend what she meant for over 30 years. Then I found out I have a condition called aphantasia. Merriam Webster defines aphantasia as “the inability to form mental images of real or imaginary people, places, or things.” The word comes from Greek, and means “without imagination.”
I literally CAN’T draw what I see, because I forget what something looks like in the millisecond it takes my eye to switch to the paper. Back then, I thought I was a bad artist. I now know that traditional painting and drawing just weren’t asking questions that my awesomely neurodivergent brain was willing to answer!
I really wanted to be an artist and I love a challenge, so I embarked on a decades-long journey. My imagination may be lacking, but my creativity is not. I didn’t know I was doing it, but I developed a mathematical and cognitive language so that I could make good art. Unique art. Aphantasia is my superpower!
My content is unusual. My mechanical mind allows me to associate thoughts in a fantastical way. I’ve had several people tell me they want to peek inside my brain to see how I come up with ideas. Since I can’t actually form a picture in my mind like most people, I make cognitive connections between memories. Memories of my life, books I’ve read, pop-culture that I love, mythology that I remember from high school Latin, etc. I squish everything together and a concept is born before I even know it’s happening.
I use math concepts to figure out composition. Since I don’t actually remember what things look like, I print out lots of photos for reference. I trace and make collages before I attempt to actually draw. When I finally put pencil to paper, it’s a lot of work, but I end up with a scale drawing that I use as a guide for weaving. I also use it to make patterns for cutting fabric. This methodical and rewarding process informs the aesthetic of my finished work.
The media in which I work is just as important to me as my process. I first began my journey into fiber art with embroidery, and have since added weaving and free-form crochet to my repertoire. All of my fiber skills are self-taught, though I have a formal education in ceramics, my original medium before I branched out to work in yarn.
Both fiber and clay call to me with their texture and technique. I am drawn to the softness of these materials, as well as the richness and depth of color that is possible. These media are quite technical in their manner of use, allowing me to use mathematical and conceptual skills, while still allowing me to be intuitive and playful as a maker.
My whole life, I thought the phrase “picture this…” was a metaphor. I was amazed by “good” artists who could draw or sculpt instinctively when I struggled so hard. Now I know that I am a good artist. I simply have a different vocabulary, created from necessity, which gives me a unique perspective. And I have a superpower!
CV
Education
Bachelor of Fine Arts in Ceramics
Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA
December 2007
Professional Experience
CONTEMPORARY FIBER ARTISTS OF LOUISIANA, Baton Rouge, LA
Vice President, Program Coordinator
2024 to present
SELF-EMPLOYED, Baton Rouge, LA
Ceramic and Fiber Artist:
Ceramics~ wheel-throwing, handbuilding, glaze formulation
Fiber~ weaving, embroidery, free-form crochet
2007 to present
RED HOT CENTER FOR CLAY, Baton Rouge, LA
Studio Assistant, Event Coordinator, Pottery Teacher
2011-2012
MIND’S EYE STUDIOS (501c3), Baton Rouge, LA
Co-founder, President, Event Coordinator, Pottery Teacher
2009-2011
Exhibitions
Group Invitational Exhibition
Frameworks Gallery, Baton Rouge, LA
2024
”PMA Members Show”
Juried Invitational Exhibition
Pensacola Museum of Art, Pensacola, FL
2024
”Share the Love”
SAQA Regional Showcase
Acansa Gallery, North Little Rock, AR
2024
”Color, Line, and Shape”
Group Invitational Exhibition
Hammond Regional Arts Center, Hammond, LA
2023
”The Art of Fiber”
Group Invitational Exhibition
Livingston Parish Arts Council, Denham Springs, LA
2023
“Once Upon a Time”
Annual Juried Invitational Exhibition
Glassell Gallery, Baton Rouge, LA
2023
“Guardians, Harbingers, and Sentinels”
Biennial Group Invitational Exhibition
Traveling exhibition, Local libraries, LA
2023-24
”Surreal Salon 15”
Annual Juried Group Exhibition
Baton Rouge Gallery, Baton Rouge, LA
2023
“The Art of Creative Fiber”
Group Invitational Exhibition
Glassell Gallery. Baton Rouge, LA
2022
“BLOOM!”
Annual Group Invitational Exhibition
Glassell Gallery, Baton Rouge, LA
2022
”Strange Paradise: A Window Into Surrealism”
Juried Group Exhibition
Annmarie Sculpture Gardens and Arts Center, Solomons, MD
2022
“Surreal Salon 14
Annual Juried Group Exhibition
Baton Rouge Gallery, Baton Rouge, LA
2022
“Members Only”
Annual Group Invitational Exhibition
Cary Saurage Exhibition Gallery, Baton Rouge, LA
2021
“Bootleggers and the Bee’s Knees”
Annual Group Invitational
Glassell Gallery, Baton Rouge, LA
2021
“Years That Ask Questions: Southern Writers”
Annual Group Invitational
Glassell Gallery, Baton Rouge, LA
2020-2021
Annual Holiday Group Invitational
FW Gallery, Baton Rouge, LA
2020
Two-Person Exhibition
FW Gallery, Baton Rouge, LA
2020
“All Creatures Great and Small”
Juried Group Exhibition
Healdsburg Center for the Arts, Healdsburg, CA
2020
“Surreal Salon 12”
Annual Juried Group Exhibition
Baton Rouge Gallery, Baton Rouge, LA
2020
Annual Holiday Group Invitational
FW Gallery, Baton Rouge, LA
2019
“Luna 18”
Annual Summer Group Invitational
Glassell Gallery, Baton Rouge, LA
2019
“Stabbed in the Art: Love/Anti-Love”
Juried Group Exhibition
ACGBR Firehouse Gallery, Baton Rouge, LA
2019
Annual Holiday Group Invitational
FW Gallery, Baton Rouge, LA
2018
“Summer of Love”
Annual Summer Group Invitational
Glassell Gallery, Baton Rouge, LA
2018
“Off to See The Wizard”
Annual Summer Group Invitational
Glassell Gallery, Baton Rouge, LA
2017
“How High’s the Water, Mama?”
Annual Summer Group Invitational
Glassell Gallery, Baton Rouge, LA
2016
“Into the Mystic”
Annual Summer Group Invitational
Glassell Gallery, Baton Rouge, LA
2015
“reWORK!”
Annual Summer Group Invitational
Glassell Gallery, Baton Rouge, LA
2013
Group Exhibition
Red Hot Center For Clay, Baton Rouge, LA
2012
“Dream Catching”
Annual Summer Group Invitational
Glassell Gallery, Baton Rouge, LA
2012
Group Exhibition
ACGBR Firehouse Gallery, Baton Rouge, LA
2011
“Decadence”
Annual Summer Group Invitational
Glassell Gallery, Baton Rouge, LA
2011
Group Exhibition
Red Hot Center for Clay, Baton Rouge, LA
2011
“Space 2010”
Annual Summer Group Invitational
Glassell Gallery, Baton Rouge, LA
2010
“American Dreams”
Annual Summer Group Invitational
Glassell Gallery, Baton Rouge, LA
2009
“Hot Tamales”
Annual Summer Group Invitational
Glassell Gallery, Baton Rouge, LA
2008
BFA Group Exhibition
Foster Gallery, Baton Rouge, LA
2007
Awards
Second Place
for “Hydra: To All the Cats I’ve Loved Before” at Baton Rouge Gallery’s 2023 juried group show, “Surreal Salon 15”
Honorable Mention
for “Hydra: To All the Cats I’ve Loved Before” at Annmarie Sculpture Garden and Arts Center’s 2022 juried group show, “Strange Paradise: A Window Into Surrealism”
People’s Choice WOW3000
for “Tom Robinson” at Glassell Gallery’s 2020 Summer group Invitational (Winter Edition 2020/21), “Years That Ask Questions: Southern Writers”
Best Evidence of Things Not Seen
for “Proginoskes” at Glassell Gallery’s 2019 Summer Group Invitational, “Luna 18”
Crunchy Granola Patchouli Moon Dance Reliquary of Earthy Goodness
for “Crown: Hippie From Above” at Glassell Gallery’s 2018 Summer Group Invitational, “Summer of Love”
Publications
”The Art of Creative Fiber” catalog., LSU School of Art, 2022,p. 19
”Artist’s Perspective” feature, 225 Magazine, June 2022, p. 77