Anna Zusman was born in the former Soviet Union, and lived in New York City, Providence and San Francisco before settling in southern Arkansas five years ago. Due to her travels, she sees the world with an eye of an outsider, noticing strange things in what other people find familiar. Her figurative work employs visual metaphors and surreal elements to comment on human condition and society.
Anna received her BFA in Illustration from Rhode Island School of Design and her MFA in Painting from San Francisco Art Institute. Anna’s artistic style has been influenced by sources from both fine art and illustration.
She is always excited to learn new techniques and materials. While her work is firmly rooted in traditional drawing, she has found new stylistic inspiration by auditing classes in Photography and 3D Modeling at Southern Arkansas University, where she is an Associate Professor of Art and Design. In 2018, Anna acquired an iPad Pro, and much of her drawing these days is done digitally.
Anna has participated in numerous art shows nationally, including the Small Works on Paper Exhibitions in 2019, 2020, and 2022, the 62nd Annual Delta Exhibition, and the Los Angeles Center for Digital Art 2019 Top 40 International Juried Competition Exhibit. Her artwork has been featured both nationally and internationally in publications including Direct Art Magazine, San Francisco Examiner, and Cordite Poetry Review.
She is a prolific zine creator and is passionate about introducing her students to the world of zine making. Her latest zines include With Sketchbook as a Traveling Companion: Mexico City (self-published, 2019) and Modern American Gods Volumes I and II (with Ray Briggs self-published, 2018). She travels to zine festivals all over the country.
