“The process of creating art is a pilgrimage that continually challenges me to investigate a deeper understanding and awe of the tangible world.  Each day provides an unique opportunity to intimately experience my environment through careful observation of form, light, and color.  Much of my inspiration is derived from the classical imagery of the Old Masters’ and I aspire to create that timeless quality in my own paintings.  I want my work to capture the simple transcendent beauty of what is experienced day to day – whether it be the fascination by familiar objects in a still life, the elegant bone structure or elusive expression of a person, or the distinctive character of a landscape."

Born in Sioux Falls, SD, in 1985, Anna began her training as a painter early in life.  At the age of sixteen she began a four-year classical apprenticeship at Pantura Studios with painters Hans-Peter Szameit and Sanna Tomac.  Anna credits her traditional atelier training in providing her with the fundamentals of seeing, drawing and rendering form from life.  Her working methods today continue to evolve, but are primarily rooted in the classical tradition.  Upon completion of her training in 2006, Anna opened her studio in Sioux Falls, SD, where she currently paints and teaches private lessons.

Anna has received multiple awards and honors for her work, such as inclusion in the prestigious Hudson River Fellowship in the summer of 2010, full-advance workshop scholarships from the Scottsdale Artist School (2007, 2008, 2009, 2010), as well as South Dakota Artist Fellowship Grant (2006, 2008, 2011). She has also been featured in Southwest Art Magazine and American Art Collector.  Anna is currently represented by Gardner Colby Gallery in Naples, FL.

REPRESENTATION

Gardner Colby Gallery, Naples, FL  www.gardnercolbygallery.com

EXHIBITIONS

2011            Salmagundi Art Club Annual Non-Member Juried Painting & Sculpture Exhibition, NYC, NY

2011            Governor's Awards in the Arts 2011: Kaleidoscope, Pierre, SD

2010            Reality Check, Gardner Colby Gallery, Naples, FL

2009            Beaux Arts 09’ Auction and Benefit, Scottsdale Artist School, AZ

2009            Paintings for Pink, Benefit for Breast Cancer, Gardner Colby Gallery, Naples, FL

2009            Celebrating Women Artists, Showings Fine Art Gallery, Denver, CO

2009            Figuratively Speaking, Gardner Colby Gallery, Naples, FL

2008            Masters of Illusion, Tempe Center for the Arts, AZ

2008            Contemporary American Realism: 2008 Biennial, Fort Wayne Museum of Art, IN

2008            Beaux Arts 08’ Auction and Benefit, Scottsdale Artist School, AZ

2008            Endless Imagination: South Dakota Governor's Third Biennial Art Exhibition

2007            Best & Brightest Juried Show; Scottsdale, AZ

2007            Solo Exhibition, Eastbank Gallery, Sioux Falls, SD

2006            Contemporary American Realism: 2006 Biennial, Fort Wayne Museum of Art, IN

2006            Emerging Artists Exhibition, Craftsman Creek Gallery, Sioux Falls, SD 

FELLOWSHIPS & HONORS

2011          Finalist in ACOPAL's Exhibition of Contemporary American Realism

2011          South Dakota Artrist Fellowship Grant

2010          The Hudson River Fellowship  www.hudsonriverlandscape.com

2009          Scottsdale Artists' School Tuition Scholarship (Windgate Charitable Foundation)       

2008          Scottsdale Artists' School Tuition Scholarship (Windgate Charitable Foundation)  

2008          Finalist in Figure Category; The Artist's Magazine 25th Annual Art Competition

2007          Scottsdale Artists' School Best and Brightest Juried Show Scholarship

2007          Scottsdale Artists' School Tuition Scholarship (Windgate Charitable Foundation) 

2007          South Dakota Artist Fellowship Grant

2006          Honorable Mention Finalist; Art Renewal Center International Salon  www.artrenewal.org

2006          Scottsdale Artists' School Tuition Scholarship (Wright Foundation for the Arts)

2005          South Dakota Emerging Artist Grant

BIBLIOGRAPHY 

Southwest Art, February 2010

Southwest Art, “Women Only”, July, 2009

Celebrating Women Artists, Showings Fine Art Invitational Catalog, July 2009 

American Art Collector, “Interpreting the Figure”, March, 2009

Contemporary American Realism, Fort Wayne Museum of Art Biennial Catalog, September 2008 

Southwest Art, “21 under 31; Emerging Artists” September 2008

Southwest Art, “Top 10 Artists to Watch”, February 2008 

2006 ARC Salon Catalog, Honorable Mention for Still Life