The Essence of the Golden Spiral

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As a child growing up in Harlem, I remember sitting beside my father as he painted vivid landscapes and imagined worlds onto stretched canvases, completely immersed in color and creation. I would watch his hands move with certainty and intuition, mixing pigment and soul together with every brushstroke. It was in those quiet, sacred moments that I first fell in love with art. Years later, I’ve come to realize that love never left me, it simply evolved. It spiraled, like time and memory and growth, in ever-widening circles. This body of work, *The Golden Spiral*, is a celebration of that evolution: my personal journey as an artist, a mother, a teacher, and a woman searching for balance and purpose in the pattern of life.

 

The golden spiral, rooted in the Fibonacci sequence and nature’s own architecture, represents more than mathematical perfection to me. It symbolizes divine order, expansion, and the hidden harmony within chaos. You find it in galaxies, seashells, sunflowers, and the curl of a child’s lock of hair. It shows up when we least expect it, in heartbreak and healing, in silence and song. In this collection, I’ve attempted to capture the way beauty and structure coexist in both the natural and emotional world. Each piece is an offering, a meditation, and a moment of clarity carved out of life’s constant motion.

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Some works are quiet; others shout. Many feature gold leaf, an intentional nod to sacredness, the shimmer of something holy in the everyday. Acrylics layer and peel, like memory. Mixed media elements echo lived experiences that are both tactile and intangible. Spirals appear overtly and subtly, always pulling us inward before releasing us again. They mirror the way I’ve navigated grief, motherhood, resilience, and creativity, growing not in a straight line, but through circles of rediscovery.

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As a teacher for over seven years, I’ve watched children process the world through art before they can even explain their feelings in words. They too spiral, from innocence to awareness, from expression to understanding. I wanted this series to speak to that journey, the spiral from self-doubt to self-expression, from chaos to creation. Every canvas holds part of my story, but I hope each viewer also sees their own reflection in it: their past, their becoming, their healing.

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There were seasons when I couldn’t paint, when the weight of commuting four hours daily, raising children, and supporting my husband in his military service made creativity feel like a luxury. But the spiral always returned. Art returned. It beckoned me in quiet moments, whispering that there was still something in me that needed to be seen, needed to be felt. And now, standing here, I realize the spiral never disappeare,it simply deepened. 

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I dedicate this exhibition to the people who held space for me when I forgot how to hold it for myself. To my late aunt, who taught me that life is what you make it. To my husband, whose love and belief ground me. To my children, whose laughter and curiosity remind me daily of what is pure. To my father, who first showed me how art can translate emotion into eternity. And to the mentors and artists, like Collins Chuks, who opened doors and poured into me when I needed direction and confidence the most.

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The Golden Spiral is not just a visual theme. It’s a lifeline, a philosophy, a prayer. It’s my reminder that progress isn’t always linear and that even in the messiness of life, there is order, there is light, and there is art. If you feel something while standing in front of these works, if you pause, breathe, remember, or even question, that’s the spiral at work. That’s the quiet miracle of connection.

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Thank you for witnessing this chapter with me. I hope it stirs something in you.

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With love and light,
Crystal Hanton-Johnson

Founder, Crystal Hanton Art
crystalhantonart.com | crystalhantonart@gmail.com