Janna Carter is an artist who uses more than one medium to convey her artistic expression. Whether it be manipulating clay into birds or tiny boxes with intricate lids or catching a unique photograph from different angles, she has an eye for detail.

Carter has several items in her collection on display during the month of June at the Art Center of Burlington.

She also creates using traditional raku where pieces are carved out of a lump of clay.

“I’m not a potter though. A potter makes something functional,” Carter said.

“Ceramic art objects are my niche,” Carter said.

Her choice in practice, sculpting, has a therapeutic effect. “Sculpting is easy on my hands, and I can work in my studio at my own pace,” Carter said.

Time gets away from her though. Carter said a wristwatch gets in the way of her work, and she doesn’t stop to check the time on her phone. She can emerge hours later to fix dinner, only to learn the dinner hour has passed. Her solution – a cuckoo clock. “I know what time it is at every hour,” Carter said.

Carter was a graphic designer for over 25 years, but the onset of arthritis has put her out of the traditional workforce. Clay manipulation and sculpture have been effective in dealing with her disease. She said her disability first emerged in 2014 and started to take a toll on her work in graphic design.

“I had to reinvent myself,” Carter said. She took her first class working with clay in 2022. Carter said she fell in love with ceramics after taking a master class in the medium in Italy. She returned to the country for a fellowship. Her collection of ceramic birds is a large part of the show at the Art Center of Burlington this month.

The tiny ceramic boxes with intricate lids that are part of the exhibit are a marvel of imagination and a nod to historical figures – other artists, politicians, and entertainers. There is a box with a lid that features former Secretary of State Madeline Albright’s pins, and another with Vincent Van Gogh’s ear as the lid.

The boxes were inspired by Carter’s mother-in-law who had tiny boxes on display everywhere in her home. “It was intriguing to me. I never knew what I was going to find in them,” Carter said.

The mermaid’s monofin box sat on a shelf in Carter’s studio for six months while she researched glazes that would simulate white caps on waves in the water.

Carter’s photography is inspired by her travels. She utilizes editing and color techniques to make the everyday look extraordinary.

A view from the top of the Vienna, Austria Ferris wheel is one such example. “It was an absolutely boring ride. The vantage point was the most interesting part of the experience,” Carter said.

Carter uses an iPhone 14 and editing skills to create her artistic photographs. She also has an eye for detail and exploring different vantage points of the same location to tell the story she is trying to convey. Two examples that are part of the ACB exhibit are Galleria Sciara, where Carter shot the inside and outside of the building, and 59 Rivoli which shows the same photo from the bottom and the top of a winding staircase.

“I find the details that are overlooked,” Carter said.

The photography collection also lends itself to rescue and the use of color. Carter frames her photographs in stacking frames, made of found frames that she repairs, and combines varying sizes to display the photos. A clear color theme that emerges from the edited photo becomes the dominant color for the frame.

The frames alone are striking in color choice and hue saturation.

The photography portion of the exhibit show off Carter’s graphic design background. She has a degree in the field from Iowa State University. She has a Master of Fine Arts in Integrated Design from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. She taught design there also while living on the east coast. Born and raised in Des Moines, Carter has lived in Henderson County, Illinois, on the east coast, Cedar Rapids and now calls Burlington home.

Her exhibit, Light and Fire, opened at the beginning of the month, and the artist reception was Friday night. Lolo Russo was selected by Carter to provide music for the event. The exhibit will run for the month of June.