Crystal Wagner was a kindergarten student in Baltimore when the teacher pulled her mother aside and predicted the young girl would be a famous artist.
“My mom kind of laughed at it,” Wagner said of the experience. “But, after that moment, everything in my life was geared toward art.”
At 33, Wagner is living the dream as a full-time artist, showcasing her meticulously crafted boxes that hold paper folded into three-dimensional objects at The Millworks in Harrisburg.
Cultivating her love of art at a young age, Wagner’s parents would line her bedroom floor with tiles instead of carpet so she could create without worry of ruining the flooring. An entire wall was devoted to a peg-system easel to allow her to paint and draw at will.
Wagner never doubted she would pursue art as a profession—it was the only option she saw for herself. Art as an expression was the language that spoke the loudest to her, she said.
She would spend the rest of her life moving around the country, living in Pine Grove through high school before pursuing an associate’s degree at Keystone College in La Plume. In 2004, she received her bachelor’s in fine arts from Atlanta College, and in 2008, she earned her master’s in fine arts from the University of Tennessee.
Like many artists, Wagner’s craft wasn’t lucrative enough to support her. Instead, she started teaching art at Georgia College of Liberal Arts, just south of Atlanta. After five years in academia, it was her time to shine as an artist.
“It was clear that the potential was there for me to live on my art alone,” Wagner said. “People were noticing the work that I was doing, and they wanted me to do more. It was a surreal time for me.”
Handing in her resignation felt much like the day she handed in her apron at her first job as a waitress, Wagner said. She was done with this. It was time for something new.
Now, on any given day, she’ll open her inbox to see fan mail from all over the world and requests from museums, galleries and collectors who want to showcase her work. After years of working to get that attention, she said, it’s nice to see people coming to her.
The decision to move to Harrisburg was one that seemed inevitable but worked out well, she said. Wagner and her ex-husband share custody of their two children, and, after he started attending school at Penn State, Wagner said, she needed to move closer. Hoping to not have to venture as far as Philadelphia, she searched for galleries in the area and found The Millworks.
“(Wagner) is passionate and focused, and we are delighted to have her,” said Tara Chickey, arts director for The Millworks.
Wagner will have three shadowboxes on display through April 30.
“These works are so unique, modern, organic, rhythmic and absolutely beautiful,” Chickey said. She has found herself admiring them on numerous occasions and is eager to see more of what Wagner has to offer.
In addition to her boxes, Wagner is known for creating larger-than-life paper sculptures that can take up entire rooms and require viewers to walk inside them. Her goal is to create a sense of wonder for those who enter the sculptures, and she’s seen people brought to tears, laughter and joy as they view them.
Since moving to Harrisburg in August, Wagner hasn’t spent too much time in the area. She’s often traveling to different exhibits where she sets up her sculptures for display—sometimes taking weeks at a time to complete the projects.
But she’s looking forward to the times she does get to settle in to her new home. While Harrisburg doesn’t have the amount of contemporary art she’s used to seeing in Los Angeles or San Francisco, she’s met many people who are proud and passionate about what they create.
“There are craftsmen here who value conviction in their labor and work,” Wagner said. “There’s a real sense of community in all of it. The excitement is really wonderful, and, the second this place becomes a destination for artists, I think we’ll see contemporary art take over.”
The Millworks is located at 340 Verbeke St., Harrisburg. Crystal Wagner’s shadowboxes will be on display through April 30. For more information, visit www.millworksharrisburg.com or call 717-695-4888.
