photo by zaina mahmoud

Bio

Anna Richards is an abstract expressionist painter and textile artist based in Austin, Texas. She has been creating art since 2009 across multiple mediums including painting, drawing, photography, video, textiles, and mixed media.

Originally from Nashville, Tennessee, Anna has also lived in Connecticut and Georgia. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Studio Art from Wesleyan College. Beyond her studio practice, she has worked in arts administration and community development with organizations such as Macon Arts Alliance and Knight Foundation and was the founder of Macon Artist Group, a collective of over 300 artists. Her work has been featured in exhibitions at Wesleyan College, McEachern Art Center, Athens Institute of Contemporary Art, and The Bakery. 

Artist Statement

I am an abstract expressionist artist working in painting and textiles. My practice is a way of exploring my inner world and processing the subconscious. Each work becomes a record of experiences, influences, and reflections of the world within and around me.

My paintings are shaped by mood, memory, music, sound, light, encounters, and imagination. They are evocations of a place of feeling rather than seeing. I aim to create an atmosphere that is vague but complex, that feels familiar but not too explicit.

Through painting, I translate the unseen into a visceral and physical form. It is a process of uncovering my inner landscape and transforming it into something visual and tactile.

instagram: @annarichards.art

 CV

Exhibitions

Austin Studio Tour, Skyline Gallery & Artist Studios, Austin, TX - November 2025

Interwoven, The Bakery, Atlanta, GA - May 2025

Out to Launch, McEachern Art Center, Macon, GA - May 2025

Celebrating Art, Stratford Academy, Macon, GA - March 2025

Small Works, Third Street Studio, Macon, GA - August 2023

2023 Senior Studio Art Exhibition, East Gallery - Wesleyan College, Macon, GA - April-May 2023

The Woman At the Desk, McCrary Gallery - Wesleyan College, Macon, GA - January 2023

Artists of 830 High group show, 830 High, Macon, GA - August-October 2022

Freedom & Resilience group photography exhibition, McCrary Gallery - Wesleyan College, Macon, GA - April 2022

LIGHT juried exhibition by Matt Porter, Athens Institute of Contemporary Art, Athens, GA - August-October 2021

Open Studio Show, Kathleen Jones Studio, Macon, GA - June 2021

Porch Studio Show, Macon, GA - October 2020

New Macon Open, McEachern Art Center, Macon, GA - June 2020

Drawing II, My Father’s Place, Warner Robins, GA - November 2018

Residencies

Kathleen Jones Studio Residency, Macon, GA - June 2021

Press/Publications/Features

Gallery pop-up, The Bunker, ‘Poker Face’ and more for art aficionados hitting the town on First Friday, The Macon Melody, May 1, 2025

Local Gift Guide, Macon Magazine, December 2024/January 2025

Meet Anna Richards, Bold Journey, January 16, 2024

Wesleyan College artists open their final exhibition, reveal thinking about world, Macon Telegraph, April 29, 2023

Wesleyan studio art majors to showcase series of work, WGXA, April 9, 2023

Artist Interview - Anna Richards, The Artful Collective, March 2023

Artist exhibit opens at Wesleyan, local musician playing Macon’s classic venues, Macon Telegraph, January 15, 2023

Wesleyan College ‘Women at the Desk’ art exhibition on display, 41NBC, January 13, 2023

830 High hosts inaugural art show, 41NBC, August 5, 2022

First Friday features first-ever art show at 830 High, Macon Telegraph, August 5, 2022

Share Your Local Love Gift Guide, Macon Magazine, October/November 2021

Inaugural Macon Art eXplosion, Macon Telegraph, October 22, 2021

Featured artist, Local Love Box, Macon, GA - Fall 2021

Community Projects

Macon Artist Group, founder, 2020 to present

Board Member, Bragg Jam Music Festival, 2023-2024

Creative Conversations, co-founder, Macon, GA

Art Juror, Macon Art Explosion, August 2021 - October 2021

Mural Installer, Bike Walk Macon, 2021

Steering Committee Member, Macon Cultural Master Plan, January 2019-January 2020

Awards

2022-2023 William P. Simmons Art Scholarship, Community Foundation of Central Georgia.

2021 Downtown Ambassador Award, Tour of Progress Partners in Progress, Newtown Macon.

Education

B.A. Studio Art, Wesleyan College

A.A. Studio Art, Georgia Military College

Work

Gallery & Communications Assistant, Macon Arts Alliance - April 2015 - September 2017