Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Anami Hayes. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Anami, appreciate you joining us today. When did you first know you wanted to pursue a creative/artistic path professionally?

Originally, I’ve always wanted to be a scientist or work somewhere in the medical field. It was always a huge interest of mine, especially physics and figuring out how things worked. However, I’ve always had a passion for helping others when I was very young my grandmother suffered from Alzheimer’s which is a form of dementia. I used to visit her at a nursing home for a long time, she would often repeat the same phrases or ask the same questions which hurt a lot to see her in such a state. Yet, it only motivated me to want to go into the medical field, specifically neurology.

During the late years of middle school and high school, I took many art classes somehow spending more time, putting in more effort in art than any other subject. Although I wanted to do be a doctor, my grades didn’t reflect that and I didn’t get into the colleges I wanted to get into. My mother pushed me into doing art because it was my passion, at first I was apprehensive but I decided to take that risk and I knew deep in my soul it was something I really wanted to do, specifically animation. When I got accepted into SCAD and started studying, it dawned on me that you can create an even bigger impact on the world and there are many different ways of helping others through art not just by being a doctor. You can tell stories that can help relate to someone, drive emotion through painting and expression, that is what made me want to pursue art professionally.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

Truth be told, I didn’t grow up wanting to do animation or art in general but I knew that it was my true desire. In a way, I jumped into the industry and craft when I went to SCAD. My main focus is story and emotion throughout all my work, whether it is 2D Animation, which is what I specialize in or illustration. Being surrounded by so many different artists and talents, I knew at first I wasn’t up to par and had to truly put my all into everything. The biggest drive I had was to understand art and not just to learn it. What sets me apart from I believe a lot of people is choosing to work in different fields of art like directing film, acting, being in a musical, modeling, learning to dance and even getting involved in the underground creative music scene. I started to see art as a whole and not only studying Animation or Drawing, realizing that the major question is “How can you tell a story, if you haven’t lived it?” If you’re in Animation creating stories, how can you create new characters if you’ve never stepped outside of yourself and met different people.

The number one thing I am most proud of is my ability to bring together all different types of art and knowledge using it to make my stories even more impactful, knowing what texture I want to use to make my paintings more impactful, studying film to know more about composition or what kind of music I should use to add with it to add maybe as a title or background to a film. Its all about understanding, like people, bringing everyone together using art as way to build a community.

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can provide some insight – you never know who might benefit from the enlightenment.

I think often times, non-artists believe that we simply are born with “talent” which I think is almost degrading. Even other artists sometimes compare and think “wow! You’re so talented! I could never-” going on about how they could never achieve such a level. But what I hope to encourage and teach is that you have the ability to do anything. It’s all about effort and simple practice, Picasso said “Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once he grows up” which is very true. It doesn’t matter if you’re an account, a doctor, a computer science major or you work in retail to being a server, they are all artists in their own way. You don’t need to know how to paint, draw, do music etc. to be considered an artist you can add creativity in anything that you do.

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

A major lesson I had to unlearn is that to be a great artist or creative is that you need skill or it has to be “perfect”. Often times we always struggle with comparison and we see so many amazing artists with this “God-like” ability to come up with such crazy ideas, these amazing paintings or incredible detail and sometimes it’s not about that. Yes, it is important to learn fundamentals but from what I’ve learned is that it’s okay if it doesn’t make sense to others. It’s okay if it’s different, run with what you feel is right in your heart and soul because not everything has to be so technical.

When I was in school I had an obsession over drawing realistic portraits and wanting to learn to draw in the style I wanted to. However, one day a senior told me that it’s not always about skill, its about who you are, your feelings, your thought, your intentions all come through everything you create. I was blinded by being perfect, very technical but I neglected the things I actually wanted to say because I didn’t think it would make sense or come off the way I wanted to. Run with your heart but don’t neglect the foundation, understand that everything you do is a reflection of yourself.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.anamihayes.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_illuminami/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anamihayes/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/wavyanimator

Image Credits
Personal Photo Credit @Savannah College of Art & Design