Anna Wise
Anna Wise was born in Birmingham, AL, and has lived in Nashville, TN since 2011. She is a self-taught artist whose ethereal, nostalgic paintings explore themes of hope, freedom, and purpose through landscapes overlaid onto portraiture using mixed media and oil paint.
She has participated in solo and group exhibitions including Lorenzo Swinton Gallery (Clarksville, TN), Rockwall Gallery (Nashville, TN), Red 225 Gallery (Nashville, TN), and Kennedy Douglas Center (Florence, AL). She participated in Superfine Art Fair in April 2023 and April 2024, and The Other Art Fair in May 2024 and 2025, and was The Graduate Hotels’ artist-in-residence in 2024.
Artist Statement
Anna Wise’s practice explores the boundary between internal and external landscapes, opening a portal between nostalgia and possibility. She combines portraits with landscapes based on places she’s both visited and imagined, exploring how the environments we move through shape who we are—and how we, in turn, shape them. Using a mix of watercolor, spray paint, pastels, acrylics, and oil, she builds each painting through many glazes and layers of mark-making, where structure and spontaneity meet to tell a story.
As a child, Anna often sought refuge in the woods where she would spend hours listening to music, praying, and dreaming about the future. Nature became her sanctuary, a place where she could let go of others' expectations and instead begin to rediscover a sense of adventure, hope, and purpose. That early connection to nature continues to shape her work—not just as inspiration, but as metaphor. Her paintings suggest that the "soulscapes" we carry inside us are just as real, wild, and worth exploring as the ones we stand in. Her ongoing series Wild Cartography is for anyone who’s ever felt lost in the chaos during changing seasons of life.
Contact
www.annawise.studio
annawisestudio@gmail.com
@annawise.studio
Interview
What inspires your art practice and keeps you motivated?
Finding beauty in nature! Being in the wild is my sanctuary; it's where I disconnect from the chaos and hustle of the world, and reconnect with God, myself, and my purpose.
How does your mission as an artist influence the work you create?
My mission is to capture the feeling of connection, hope, and purpose that I experience in beautiful places and translate that onto canvas. Through my work, I aim to preserve those moments of stillness and reflection, offering others a sense of peace, sanctuary, and purpose.
Can you share a key part of your creative process that helps you stay focused?
I envision what I want my ideal future self to look like—what does she do? What time does she wake up? What are her studio habits? Remembering where I'm going helps me stay grounded and focused while in the studio.
What mindset tip do you rely on to overcome challenges in your art career?
When one door closes, another always opens. “Change the route, not the destination.”
How do you hope your art impacts the world or your community?
I hope that my art provides a sense of purpose, sanctuary, and hope for those who have felt defeated, isolated, and unseen.
