Khaila Carr as a Jury Member for the Lumina Award: Recognizing the Quiet Power of Shantwana Shahrin’s Art
The role of a jury member in a prestigious art recognition program carries both responsibility and influence. When the Lumina Award assembled its panel of jurors, one of the voices contributing to the evaluation of contemporary artists was Khaila Carr—a curator, artist, and arts administrator deeply embedded in the creative ecosystem of Columbus, Ohio.
Khaila Carr: Bridging Artists, Institutions, and Community
Since joining the Greater Columbus Arts Council in 2023, Khaila Carr has served as the Grants and Community Engagement Coordinator, a role that places her at a vital intersection of artistic development, funding, and community access. Within this position, she helps guide several grant programs that support the local arts landscape—including Mural Assistance, Artist Projects, Project Support, and Cultural Festival Funding.
Her work extends beyond administrative coordination. Carr collaborates directly with artists, curators, and cultural organizations to facilitate exhibitions across local art spaces, helping bring creative ideas into public view. Through this work, she acts as both a connector and advocate—ensuring artists have the resources, visibility, and institutional support needed to grow their practice.
Within the Greater Columbus Arts Council, Carr’s role holds significant cultural influence. By helping shape funding decisions and exhibition opportunities, she contributes to determining which artistic voices are amplified in the region’s cultural narrative. Her work empowers emerging artists while strengthening the city’s broader creative infrastructure.
Artist, Illustrator, and Storyteller
Carr’s understanding of art extends far beyond her administrative responsibilities. She is herself a practicing artist whose work spans mural-making, illustration, painting, and animation. Her artistic perspective was shaped during her time at the Columbus College of Art & Design, where she earned a BFA in Illustration and Fine Arts in 2018.
While studying there, she immersed herself in creative communities centered on comics, zines, and illustration, and also participated actively in student leadership. These early experiences fostered a commitment to both artistic expression and community collaboration.
As a queer Filipino-American woman, Carr’s work often explores themes surrounding the duality of femininity—strength paired with softness, resilience paired with vulnerability. She describes this sensibility as being “hard but soft, like a flower petal on a leather boot,” a poetic metaphor that reflects the layered emotional narratives within her work.
In 2024, Carr further strengthened her leadership in the social and cultural sector by completing the Kathy Duffy Espy Leadership for Social Change Program at the YWCA Columbus. This program emphasizes equity-driven leadership, community advocacy, and social transformation—values that resonate strongly with her artistic and professional practice.
Outside her professional and creative pursuits, Carr enjoys traveling, collecting tattoos, spending time with her corgi, and sipping matcha lattes—small rituals that balance the intensity of her work in the arts.
Encountering Shantwana Shahrin’s Work
Shahrin’s artistic journey began in Jashore, Bangladesh, where she first studied child art education at the Charupith Art Research Institute. This early experience shaped her sensitivity to imagination, spontaneity, and expressive mark-making—elements that remain central to her visual language today.
Later, she pursued a BFA in Graphics at Visva-Bharati University in Santiniketan, India, followed by an MFA from the same institution. The philosophy of Santiniketan—rooted in humanism, creative freedom, and harmony with nature—deeply influenced her artistic worldview.
Her black-and-white relief prints are particularly notable for their bold lines and textured surfaces, creating powerful visual rhythms that guide the viewer through layered emotional landscapes.
From Studio to Scholarship
Shahrin’s practice extends beyond the studio into education and research. She previously worked as an art educator at BAF Shaheen College Dhaka and later joined the faculty of fine arts at Khulna University in Bangladesh.
Her academic engagement complements her creative work. Through research and writing, she reflects critically on art pedagogy, cultural identity, and contemporary visual culture.
She also directs Bornika, an independent studio dedicated to experimentation, mentorship, workshops, and exhibitions. Through Bornika, Shahrin nurtures artistic dialogue and learning, encouraging both emerging artists and art lovers to explore creative practice as a space of intellectual and emotional transformation.
Reflecting on the work, she shared:
“Echoes of Nature'' originally stood out to me because of the limited color and detailed line work. Womanhood is often depicted in art as bright and colorful, pinks and roses, but it can sometimes be the opposite—thorns and darkness. I felt that this piece shows how beautiful the experience of womanhood can be once we can finally rest alongside nature and the peacefulness of earth.”
Carr’s observation highlights a key aspect of Shahrin’s practice—the ability to portray femininity not through decorative symbolism, but through introspection, quiet resilience, and connection with the natural world.
Art as Dialogue Across Cultures
The interaction between a Columbus-based arts leader and a Bangladeshi visual artist demonstrates how contemporary art transcends geographic boundaries. Through platforms like the Lumina Award, artists such as Shantwana Shahrin gain international visibility, while jurors like Khaila Carr help shape conversations about what artistic voices deserve recognition and reflection today.
In this dialogue, art becomes more than an object of viewing—it becomes a shared language connecting nature, identity, memory, and humanity across cultures.
Congratulations to the artist for winning the Lumina Award—an inspiring recognition of your artistic vision, dedication, and outstanding achievements.