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

Anna, appreciate you joining us today. Do you wish you had waited to pursue your creative career or do you wish you had started sooner?

I have been drawing for as long as I could remember, but did not begin to paint professionally until about 3 years ago, in 2020 (perfect timing, right?). Before I began painting I was a musician and had some cool opportunities with that, including a record deal. But I’d always had issues with imposter syndrome/insecurity and that caused me to self sabotage and not apply myself when it counted, so nothing ever came from it. You can have all the talent and opportunities in the world but if you don’t put the work in, it means nothing. If I had started painting sooner, I wouldn’t have had the emotional maturity to carry it through. If I could go back and change one thing, it would be that I would have not listened to the voice of fear and instead followed the voice of truth – that you can do anything you set your mind and heart to if you just put the work in and don’t second guess yourself – just learn from your mistakes and keep going.
Although in one sense I wish I had started my art career sooner, the lessons learned from when I played music were invaluable. Nothing is wasted if we learn from it, and I definitely have. I’m glad I started when I did and wouldn’t change a thing.

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

In 2020 I knew I needed a change and a second chance at a creative path. I took some mixed media and oil painting classes because I wanted to take my ideas in a more “fine art” kind of direction and push the envelope. I use multiple layers, color, and imagery tell a story and feel I couldn’t get that complexity across without the use of mixed media and oil paint. I noticed a lot of art seemed really negative, and in contrast I wanted to provide art that was from a hopeful, powerful place. Not that great art can’t come from dark places – every one of us has experienced trauma in some way and it’s important to be honest about that. It’s beautiful when art can bypass defense mechanisms, communicate what words can’t, and help someone heal. But instead of painting my demons, I’d rather paint the angels fighting those demons, if that makes sense. When someone sees my art, my goal is for them to feel like they just had a wild dream that was really symbolic and empowering to them. I do a lot of commissions and the biggest reward for me is to see someone’s jaw drop, or sometimes even cry because the painting resonates with them in such a strong way. I believe art is a powerful force in that you can literally paint something from thin air, bring it into existence when it wasn’t there previously. That’s very much a parallel to life in my opinion.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

My ultimate goal is to provide a visual representation of hope and empowerment – literally one’s wildest dreams come to life. In my art I aspire to create a world where anything is possible and inspire others to take that idea and apply it to their lives. All it takes is a spark to ignite a fire and I hope that my art can be that spark for people.

Are there any books, videos, essays or other resources that have significantly impacted your management and entrepreneurial thinking and philosophy?

“Big Magic” by Elizabeth Gilbert is a must read. I’m naturally very cautious and second guess myself too much – this book helped me overcome that. She talks about creativity with a fresh perspective, like it is a living being and we must be kind to it to see it manifest in our lives. She also shares some of her successes as well as failures and makes failure not seem like a big deal, as long as you dust yourself off and keep going.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.annathewiser.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/annathewiser.art
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/annathewiserart

Image Credits
Gage Gleim