By Allison Hernandez, Staff Writer
Newman University’s Steckline Gallery is set to host its latest First Friday event, showcasing assistant professor Shannon Johnston’s exhibition “Qualities and Quantities.” The show runs from today through Nov. 27, with an opening reception from 5 to 7 p.m. on Friday and a special Art for Lunch event from noon to 1 p.m. today.
“Qualities and Quantities” reflects Johnston’s personal journey through motherhood, marking the profound life changes she experienced after having children later in life, she said.
“I became a mom at 40 in the fall of 2021, and that reshaped everything in my life — my marriage, my work, even the way I teach and interact with my students,” Johnston said. The exhibition touches on themes of postpartum depression, anxiety and the painstaking routines she relied on to feel a sense of control.
To manage the unpredictability of new motherhood, Johnston took to recording details of her child’s early routines.
“I documented every diaper, every minute of sleep, every feeding — everything,” she said. “It became a way to bring order to the chaos I was feeling.”
This meticulous documentation has since inspired her art, which explores themes of repetition, control and cycles — elements she believes resonate with the routines that structure student life.
Johnston has been immersed in the art world since she was a child, she said.
“I told my parents I was going to be an artist when I was 5 years old, and there was no looking back,” she said.
Johnston’s path to becoming an artist and educator was shaped by a lifelong fascination with creativity.
“I was always drawn to art, always making things, and I think my introduction to the art world actually began in my mom’s kitchen when I was young,” she said. “It wasn’t just about making things; it was about creating things that held meaning, that were made to be given to someone else.”
After being homeschooled from third grade through high school, Johnston took private art lessons with professional artists, pursuing her interest in art through both undergraduate and graduate studies. Despite initially thinking she would become a professional artist, she found herself working in community outreach roles, spending years in the nonprofit sector.
“In those roles, I shifted from equal parts artist and community developer to focusing more on the development side,” she said. “But I found myself really unhappy and unsatisfied with that work, so I made my way back to the art world, first as the director of the Steckline Gallery and later as a faculty member at Newman.”
As an artist, Johnston works in a variety of mediums, including painting, drawing and installation work. She often finds inspiration in the materials she’s drawn to and the stories she wants to tell.
“I’m not one of those artists who finds one thing to pursue endlessly,” she said. “A lot of what inspires me is what’s happening in the moment. I think about the materials and how to tell my story in a way that is accessible to others.”
Reflecting on the pieces in “Qualities and Quantities,” Johnston said the show is deeply personal, yet she has crafted it to be relatable for viewers from all walks of life.
“I want my artwork to be all the things I don’t think I am — organized, subtle, delicate, beautiful, meaningful, significant,” she said. “Most importantly, I want people to find themselves in the work, even if their experiences are vastly different from mine.”
One piece in the show, titled “Endless Cycles,” features prints of baby clothes, symbolizing the endless cycles of caregiving that dominate early parenthood.
“There’s a cycle of constantly changing clothes, doing laundry, buying new things as they keep outgrowing everything every two to three months,” Johnston said. “But cycles and repetition are things students can relate to, too — the cycles of semesters, classes, athletic seasons and practices. It’s about finding common ground in those experiences.”
Johnston said she hopes viewers of her show take away an appreciation for the beauty in everyday routines and the strength found in the ordinary.
“Art can be a space where people feel seen and understood, and I hope this exhibition gives them that moment to connect, to see themselves in someone else’s experience,” she said.
PHOTO: Dannicka McGrath, Photographer
