Artist Statement
My practice encompasses a wide range of media, including wood and metal sculpture, ceramics, digital fabrication, glassblowing, and printmaking. My work addresses themes of personal experience and identity, specifically my cultural and racial background, the dualities of multiculturalism, psychology, and the subconscious.
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My art reflects my mixed-race Brazilian, Japanese, and European heritage. Art is a way for me to explore and understand my diverse but complicated identity and unique perspectives that come with growing up and living at such intersections. On top of that, I want my work to serve as a reminder of the richness of each culture and the importance of learning about those that came before us in order to preserve and recognize our roots, traditions, and collective heritage. As most of my racial ancestry is Japanese, traditional Japanese iconography strongly influences my artwork.
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My sculptures also abstract the human figures to reflect upon the human condition and psyche itself. I abstract the figures’ shapes and forms into distressing and distorted poses, which convey emotions such as agony, despair, anguish, and sorrow. The absence of color adds to the haunting and unsettling effect, however, I also want them to be enigmatically beautiful and visually appealing.
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My choice of materials and processes is also very important to my artistic practice. I explore and mix different media in my artwork blending traditional craftsmanship with modern techniques to create innovative and unexpected outcomes. This invites the viewer to recognize the process and appreciate the craftsmanship that goes into my work.
Bio
Renan De Menezes Anan (b. 1999) is a traditional and digital sculptor. He is a Japanese-European artist born in São Paulo, Brazil. He currently resides and works in Umeå, Sweden as he pursues his MFA degree in Fine Arts at the Academy of Fine Arts at the Umeå University, class of 2026. He has a BFA Fine Arts degree from Ringling College of Art & Design (Sarasota, Florida, USA), class of 2023. Ren has attended residencies at NE Sculpture | Gallery Factory (Minnesota, Minneapolis, 2023), Salem Art Works (Salem, New York, 2023), and Pilchuck Glass School (Stanwood, Washington, 2022). He was awarded the Lucy Morgan scholarship to attend workshops at the Penland School of Craft (Penland, North Carolina, USA), the Friends of Arrowmont scholarship to attend workshops at the Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts (Gatlinburg, Tennessee, USA), the AXA US Finalist Art Prize (New York, New York, 2023), the Best of Ringling – Bronze Award (Sarasota, Florida, 2023), and Crossing the Finishing Line Award (Sarasota, Florida, 2023). He has been an active participant in numerous group exhibitions, including The Thirty-Ninth Annual Art Auction (Allentown, Pennsylvania, 2024), the 2024 Baum School of Art Faculty & Staff Exhibition (Allentown, Pennsylvania, 2024), AXA Art Prize US 2023 Exhibition (New York, New York, 2023), Silly Geese (Salem, New York, 2023), Antithesis, 然[Rán], Pot-Pourri, and Memoir (Sarasota, Florida, 2022-2023) group exhibitions. To quote Ren about his work: “What drives me to create my art is how I can explore, reflect upon, and finally translate visually my life’s experiences and my personal identity into a compelling piece, something tangible.”
Exhibitions
Exhibitions
Exhibitions
The Thirty-Ninth Annual Art Auction
2024 The Baum School of Art, Allentown, Pennsylvania, USA
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2024 Faculty & Staff Exhibition
​2024 The Baum School of Art, Allentown, Pennsylvania, USA
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AXA Art Prize US 2023 Exhibition
​2023 New York Academy of Art, New York, New York, USA
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Silly Geese
2023 North Main Gallery, Salem Art Works, Salem, New York, USA
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Rán [然]
2023 Phillippi Creek Community Club, Sarasota, Florida, USA
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Antithesis
2023 Crossley Gallery, Ringling College of Art & Design, Sarasota, Florida, USA
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Pot-Pourri
2022 Phillippi Creek Community Club, Sarasota, Florida, USA
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Memoir
2022 Savage Gallery, Ringling College of Art & Design, Sarasota, Florida, USA
Residencies
Residencies
Residencies
Residencies
Residencies
2023 NE Sculpture | Gallery Factory, Artist Intern Fellowship, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
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2023 Salem Art Works, Blacksmithing Studio Artist Residency – Session 1, Salem, New York, USA
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2022 Pilchuk Glass School, The Gathering, Stanwood, Washington, USA
2018 California Institute of the Arts, Extended Studies Animation Residency, Santa Clarita, California, USA
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Awards
2024 Lucy Morgan Scholarship, Penland School of Craft, Penland, North Carolina, USA
Damascus: Introduction to Pattern Welding, Andrew Meers
2024 Friends of Arrowmont Scholarship, Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts, Gatlinburg, Tennessee, USA
Joinery 1: How To Use Complex Joinery In Furniture, Taeho Kwon
Spiral Carved and Straight Carved Vessels, Avelino Samuel
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2023 AXA Art Prize US Finalist, New York Academy of Art, New York, New York, USA
2023 Best of Ringling - Bronze Award, Ringling College of Art & Design, Sarasota, Florida, USA
2022 Crossing the Finish Line, Ringling College of Art & Design, Sarasota, Florida, USA
2022 Pilchuck Glass School, The Gathering, Stanwood, Washington, USA
Collections
​2024 The College Permanent Art Collection, Muhlenberg College, Allentown, Pennsylvania, USA