Meet

Anna Koeferl

With a focus on the intersection of contemporary art and craft, Anna Koeferl reimagines the landscape of South Louisiana through interventions in paint, print, and paper.

Where are you from and where do you reside?

I’m from New Orleans and work there now as a graphic designer and artist.

What is the most difficult part of the artistic process for you?

Definitely the process of “killing my darlings.” Because my pieces are ink and gouache on paper, I can’t erase any marks, so I end up making several iterations of the same design. Deciding which elements to incorporate and which to omit is the most difficult, although I do enjoy the problem-solving aspect to it.

Are there any aspects of your process that are left to chance?

On its own, the texture of gouache and ink on paper feels so perfectly imperfect to me, so I work to facilitate the circumstances for more unpredictability in texture with varying dry and wet brushstrokes. When working in collage, I find there are a lot of happy accidents that happen with unintentional scrap combinations.

Artist Anna Koeferl painting a black squiggly line on paper.

Works on paper on a desk next to a sunny window in artist Anna Koeferl's studio.

How do you choose your materials?

I am naturally drawn to the versatility of paper and personally love the texture and finish of both gouache and ink. I do occasionally work on canvas for larger pieces, but I will first create the image with ink and paper or collage.

Have you always had a paper-based? What about the medium is specific to your work?

I started using paper in college, at MICA, and was introduced to it in a real way by my teacher, Katherine Tzu-Lan Mann, who trained with Sumi ink in Taiwan and taught Works on Paper classes. This training in varying techniques and uses of paper felt refreshing alongside more traditional and Eurocentric painting classes that taught strictly oil on canvas. I continue to love paper as it’s economical and great for storing large quantities of work.

What themes or motifs are you consistently drawn to?

Bananas. I find them so strange and iconic and distinctly representative of a lush tropical landscape. I grew up with giant banana trees in my backyard and see them everyday on my walks, so they continue to be a beloved and familiar subject for me.

On its own, the texture of gouache and ink on paper feels so perfectly imperfect to me, so I work to facilitate the circumstances for more unpredictability in texture with varying dry and wet brushstrokes. When working in collage, I find there are a lot of happy accidents that happen with unintentional scrap combinations.
Anna Koeferl

How has the South Louisiana landscape influenced the direction of your artistic process?

The South Louisiana landscape is a subject I know well. I am at once inspired by its beauty on a daily basis – the unique mix of subtropics and swamp – and yet painfully aware of its fragility in this rapidly changing climate, with the reality of higher heat, eroding coastlines and hurricanes becoming something we now need to learn to live with. I get a lot of purpose out of documenting, in my own way, distinct landscape motifs in new ways while applying old world techniques.

Are you influenced by any author or non-visual artist? Are you influenced by any artist that does something completely different than you?

I have this book of photography, Deep South by Sally Mann, and it's full of heartbreakingly beautiful landscapes taken with a Civil War-era camera. The images feel graceful, yet powerful, and appropriately heavy given the historical context. Along with her accompanying writing, that particular book is always a source of inspiration for me. I wouldn’t say I try to emulate her in a specific way, but I am drawn to her knowledge and reverence of the landscape she chooses.

Are you formally trained? Did you go to art school? Who did you train with / Did you have a mentor?

For high school, I went to the New Orleans Center for Creative Arts (NOCCA), and attended half days alongside an academic school. And for my BFA, I went to the Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA) in Baltimore and majored in Painting with a concentration in Graphic Design.