Anna Helgeson | Aweful Photos

I create expressive, politically charged photographs, paintings, and performances informed by the strangeness of being alive. 

Before I learned that the world could be cruel, I saw that it was gorgeous. Growing up as a feral child in the woods of northern Wisconsin my most formative memories are filled with trees, mud puddles, and wild creatures. My parents moved back to the land in the mid 1970s and started an organic farming commune. I would fall asleep after a day in the woods to the sound of my dad on the porch talking with friends about politics and wind turbines.

I received a BA from Ripon College, and an MFA (Cum Laude) from the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee. I have exhibited, performed, and lectured throughout the United States including: The Bascom: A Center for the Visual Arts (Highlands, NC), John W. Bardo Fine and Performing Arts Center (Cullowhee, NC), Holden Gallery (Swannanoa, NC),The Asheville Art Museum (Asheville, NC), The University of North Carolina, Asheville (Asheville, NC), Revolve Gallery (Asheville, NC), Work Gallery (Detroit, MI), The Milwaukee Art Museum, Lucky Star Gallery (Milwaukee, WI), The University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee Union Gallery, and am featured on the website “Reframing Photography; Theory and Practice” (Routledge Press).