Art Conspiracy’s SKEWED, the annual party to raise money for the big Art Conspiracy auction in the fall, is this weekend. And once again, ArtCon’s Martha Belden is introducing us to some of the artists whose work you’ll see Saturday night.
Sheryl Anaya is a Puerto Rican Dallas-based artist who only recently learned about Art Conspiracy, and in fact, SKEWED will mark her Art Con debut.
“My friend Diane Durant, who has been involved with Art Con [and, incidentally, was profiled in 2014], told me about it last year,” she said. “I attended Art Con X, which was the first event I’d been to. This will be my first time participating as an artist.”
Sheryl developed an interest in photography 11 years ago, eventually electing to make it her career. She then went on to study art at Texas Woman’s University, and that “really opened up my interest in a variety of other mediums, including sculpture and installation-based work.”
Sheryl also has a rather unconventional perspective on why she (and artists in general) does what she does.
“I don’t know many artists who choose to become artists,” she explains. “I think it just stems from the need to create. I enjoy the process through which the work is made and problem solving along the way.”
Her art tends to take on very personal, emotive themes, and that interaction with and responsiveness of the audience contributes to Sheryl’s motivation to create.
“A lot of my inspiration comes from personal relationships and interactions with people,” she says. “I am interested in work that engages the audience, whether through the physical use of space or on an emotional level. It is extremely rewarding to see the evolution of the work from concept to completion and then to see the audience react to and interact with it.”
On top of her photography career, Sheryl works in the Fine Arts division of the Dallas Public Library downtown, scheduling and coordinating exhibitions in the Lillian Bradshaw Gallery, “which is geared toward local and emerging artists,” she says. “In addition to that, I do outreach and help develop arts-related programs for the community.”
Sheryl was given the word justice for this year’s event, and is excited about the possibilities.
“Initially when I think of justice, I think of it in a political sense, but it can take on so many different meanings. And with SKEWED being the theme, there are many ways to interpret it.”
This Saturday, come see how she and the other artists are inspired this year at Art Con’s SKEWED, and please take a minute to check out some of Sheryl’s work.
Art Conspiracy presents SKEWED Saturday night.
