We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Anna Agee. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Anna below.

Anna, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Are you happier as a creative? Do you sometimes think about what it would be like to just have a regular job? Can you talk to us about how you think through these emotions?

Yes, I am happy as an artist and a creative. When I first entered art school, I was scared because I believed that a specialized program would absorb my whole character, locking me into a set path. Yet, while studying art, I learned I was happier surrounded by many sources of inspiration through the artwork my courses enmeshed me in. The structure of my coursework didn’t end up constraining my character but instead expanding my identity as an artist. The decision to enroll allowed me to find a community of like-minded people who shared a passion for the arts. Overall, the more I push myself to pursue a creative career, the more joy and fulfillment I find inside myself.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

The first thing someone should know about me is that I am a multidisciplinary artist. My work encompasses various mediums in sculpture and painting, shown through my work in spackle. These pieces are adorned on either stretched canvases or wood panels. Currently, I have expanded my skill set to create the stretched canvas that I use in my work to allow for further customization of the work’s shape. For the sculpture aspect of my multidisciplinary practices, the sculpture is built up in spackle to create a three-dimensional form on an otherwise two-dimensional painting.

Currently, I am offering commissions for custom paintings, mural work, and art restoration. My experience in art restoration involved patching canvas and filling in the paint where the damage lies. I strive to create a consistent communication venue with my clients and am eager to provide them with an accessible and adaptable exchange.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

This year marks my third year at Ringling. The time I have spent enrolled in Ringling finally matches how long it took me to begin my education. My body gave up on me after a childhood of putting it through stress caused by underlying and undiagnosed issues. Each year, I applied to Ringling, and during those three years, despite my acceptance each time, I could not attend because of my health.

During my sickness, I found art as a source of comfort for me. Despite my body’s spirited refusal to keep going, I forced myself forward and made do with the cards my body dealt. Though I still struggle daily with chronic illness, the adaptability, and preservence taught through my experiences are invaluable as an artist. The most important of these skills was not to surrender my dream as a creative, regardless of what obstacles I found myself in.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

An important lesson is that a person does not need to be at a certain point to be a successful artist. You can be an artist no matter where you are in your life, and even though I have both benefitted and thrived at Ringling, I was an artist at my lowest even when I had no network of creatives, and it was only me.

Even though I could not be at Ringling for years because of my health, that didn’t mean I was any less of an artist. Shedding the pressure that required me to adapt to the trajectory of my peers well on their way through college allowed me the kindness I needed to blossom as a creative.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/annacatherineagee?igsh=YnA1Z2FsYm53bDFl&utm_source=qr
• Other: Email: [email protected] I would appreciate my group exhibition being mentioned. It is March 22th, 5pm to 8pm on Friday, at the Savage Gallery on the Ringling College of Art and Design campus. It is called Can You Not Talk? Featuring the works of myself, Natalia Burdett and Valeria Guerra Garcia. Thank you for this amazing opportunity!

Image Credits
All images belong to Anna Agee