Explore Art with Kanvas.ai's Artists - Anna
Anna Kõuts - Pregnancy as a call to art and connection with Nature and Soul.
This week we are sharing with you our conversation with Anna.
Coming from Estonia, a relatively small land, she found inspiration by the vast beauty of Nature and the connection between simple objects of Nature with the human Soul.
Find out more about her art and the technique she uses in the following paragraphs.
You may find Anna’s artworks on Kanvas.ai by visiting her artist page.
Who you are and what are your mediums?
My name is Anna Kõuts, I currently live and work in Estonia. Most of my creations are traditional oil paintings on canvas, but I am also a big fan of digital art, so some of my newest works are done in Procreate.
Explain your subjects/themes in 5 sentences.
Most of my oil paintings depict different Nature objects, often with a very close (almost macro) look into very casual things or landscapes – vegetables, fruits and flowers, the sky and the sea. In fact, the subject of my study is a connection between the human Soul and Nature and how, by being a natural part of the Universe, we can see the reflections of our own feelings in other objects of Nature. If only we allowed ourselves to feel the different energy hidden in every masterpiece of Nature!
My digital works go beyond that, my wish is to look closer into the human Soul and to show the inner Light each of us have inside. These paintings are inspired by my visions during meditations and some spiritual practices.
What is your background?
I have been painting since my childhood.
At the age of 8 I was brought to an art studio by my first school teacher who had noticed some potential in my drawings. Unfortunately, some years later, being a teenager and finishing my studies in The School of Art in Tallinn, I got one critical comment about my painting, which I interpreted as the absence of talent and stopped painting for next 15 years. I started painting again only when I was pregnant with my first child, following a strong call inside of me to draw and paint.
What role does The Artist have in society?
Art is something that has a connection to the human Soul, so the artist’s main role is to make people better, to bring out the best in us – it can be a touching feeling of beauty of the world or sympathy and compassion.
When people see a beautiful thing, they usually feel better and want to share this feeling around to others and that is how it brings society to a healthier and happier state of mind. With great artworks we may also experience a feeling that is very important for a human being – our connection to something much bigger than we are!
How has your practice changed over time?
Over the years I have been learning how to improve my skills and how to paint more and more realistically, but recently I started to learn digital art as it gives more freedom, opening the creativity and out-of-box thinking. Therefore, my latest digital works are more mystical and symbolic, though probably less professional as I am still doing my first steps in the digital world.
“Getting back the missing part”, Digital painting for sale on Kanvas.ai
What jobs have you done other than being an artist?
I’ve spent 26y of my life working in the banking sector.
What changes does the art world need?
I believe we all need a better understanding of our nature, closer connection to our Soul and the Source.
What would you like to do better?
I’d like to be a better version of myself each day – to explore my abilities and release the inner power and the creativity we all have inside of us.
What superpower would you have and why?
The only superpower I’d really like to have is to be able to stay always in the current moment, in the state of Now, without all these worries about the past and the future.
What will your next exhibition be?
May 2023, Palazzo del Podestà. Città di Castello, Perugia, Italia.
Where your last exhibition was?
Festival della Fotografia Etica in Lodi, Italia 2022.
What is your dream project?
My dream is to draw using fully my right side of the brain, not thinking of what and how I am doing, but being in a state of full presence, just feeling without thinking of the final result.
“Deep Inside”, Oil painting for sale on Kanvas.ai
Name three artists you’d like to be compared to.
I don’t want to be compared with other artists, but there are some modern artists that surprised me a lot and that changed my way of thinking about art. They are Alex Grey and Akiane Kramarik – both painting visions that they see with their Heart rather than with eyes.
What’s the best piece of advice you’ve been given?
One piece of advice I got from a great Estonian artist and teacher Aapo Pukk:
While learning the techniques and methods, be patient and follow the rules. Later, that brings you more freedom and the ability to create what you really want and follow your Heart.
Professionally, what’s your goal?
My goal is to bring out the beauty of Life in my artworks, and by living a happy life myself to make people around me happier.
What are your thoughts about AI art?
I am not the one criticizing AI art nor am I a fan of it.
That is something we will be able to assess objectively only over time. I just want to believe it will not replace the art produced by humans as there will always be one thing that AI would not be able to understand and replicate – a human Soul. AI does not feel the human Soul and has no energy flows, therefore, people who are able to feel the energy vibrations will always prefer paintings created by other human beings.