Today we’d like to introduce you to Anna Kester.
Hi Anna, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
I watched my dad draw cool doodles growing up and took an early interest in the arts. My first art classes took place in grade school. Surrounded by mentors in the arts in high school, I opted for four years of art electives and completed an AP Art portfolio my senior year. This was a turning point as it helped me recognize a desire to make art professionally. After high school, I furthered my pursuit of the arts at the University of Central Florida, where I earned a BFA in Studio Art with a focus in Drawing and Printmaking and a minor in Art History.
Since 2013, I have been building professional work experience through freelance fine artwork, offering commissions in a variety of mediums: acrylic and watercolor paintings, pen and ink drawings, logo design, merchandise and brand design, architectural drawings, medical illustration, installations, murals, chalk drawings, and more. My process across all mediums is first to look deeply in attentive observation, and then to create art in a way that celebrates the power of the ordinary and the beauty of individuals – all in a way that invites others to join me in seeing the world with fresh eyes.
My personal favorite creative sweet spot is when I can find a way to apply the arts and creative expression to solve real-world problems, brighten community spaces, and bless individuals. An undercurrent of my professional experience is an interest in the psychological, social, and functional impacts that art can have when applied to medical technology, to innovation, and toward empowering communities. One of my favorite examples of those interests intersecting was conducting research with Limbitless Solutions and the Burnett Honors College through an undergraduate honors thesis during college. My research explored the capacity of artfully designed, 3D printed, custom-painted prosthetic arms to empower confidence in users. The focus of the study was changing the social narrative surrounding “disability” from negative to positive.
More recently, my efforts to bring art into the industry to inspire and empower people have taken to new avenues. I love making murals in community spaces, such as a custom 4-part mural I installed last Fall in the center of the new Verizon Business 5G Innovation Hub in Lake Nona. Similarly, I love the way that graphic design can communicate boldly across so many platforms to so many audiences. I currently work full-time as a graphic designer at BioSchwartz in Orlando, creating graphic marketing assets, label designs, and more – all of which directly help people pursue health and wellness through natural means. In my free time, I enjoy pursuing freelance work, exploring new mediums, and discovering new ways to wield the power of creativity.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Choosing to pursue the arts professionally was by no means simple. I have loved the arts since childhood, yet I was not convinced of the viability of the arts as a career path until midway through college. Through internship experiences at UCF in the theme park and engineering industries, I learned how to adapt my creative skills to work alongside other people of different skill sets and disciplines on a larger problem. These experiences made me realize that artists are absolutely essential in every industry for their abilities to creative thinking and visual express ideas.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I believe what sets me apart from others is my wide creative approach to a variety of mediums. I specialize in mural art, graphic design, marketing & ad design, watercolor & acrylic fine art painting, writing and speaking, illustration, book arts, and more. I view all of these unique modes of creativity as inter-connected pieces of my creative practice as a whole. I love to blur the lines between the different facets of the creative world, and I am always pursuing new outlets to add to my arsenal of creative expression!
What sort of changes are you expecting over the next 5-10 years?
I believe that the collaboration between traditional and digital creative mediums is only going to increase and grow throughout the creative industry over time. The worlds of Art and Design will continue expanding and weaving their way into everything humans are a part of. Digitally harnessing the power of the arts is a part of the world of art and design that I believe will continue to skyrocket as technology keeps advancing.
Contact Info:
- Email: akkester@gmail.com
- Website: akesterstudio.com
- Instagram: @akesterstudio
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/akesterstudio
Image Credits
Spegal Creative
