Today we’d like to introduce you to Anna Kidd.
Hi Anna, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstories.
Howdy! My name is Anna Kidd and Wild Kidd Design is my graphic design and illustration business while doubling as my life’s passion project. Art runs through my veins, the first time I created was before I can even remember. Drawing and painting have saved my ADHD throughout my life and probably some bad habits too.
Although I have been creating art throughout my childhood to now, society and family pressures made that idea unfathomable in my mind; I had such a passion for science and conservation ecology that I thought it was the more realistic route to go. After graduating from Montana State University in 2020 with a Bachelor of Science in Conservation Biology and Ecology and taking a job at a local carnivore conservation non-profit as well as an African mammal lab technician job, I decided… hmmm I’m bored and frustrated.
I had taken a break from my art shenanigans to study and work towards my degree but when the pandemic hit, obviously it was a perfect time to start back up. At the end of 2020, I started an instagram account to sell some art to make a couple of bucks selling paintings and line drawings during the pandemic… and holy schmakoley… all I can say is it changed my life. I forgot what it was like to enjoy something I was doing that wasn’t your usual endorphin pumpers (friends, working out, eating), and then to make MONEY off it. Twist my arm! Fine, I’ll do it.
From there I took off running, trying to create art all the time, and even branching out to digital art on a super old iPad app (don’t worry I upgraded). I got amazing love and support from my wonderful family and friends which really fueled my fire. I continued to work at my non-profit job, starting to ask to help with graphic design projects and illustrated graphics and do markets to sell my artwork and prints in my free time. I ended up creating a manual of graphics for my non-profit position. As my dad always says, “You will never know unless you ask.” Doing about 25 markets over the summer helped me narrow down what people loved and gave me the confidence to face crowds and sell myself and my art.
I knew I could make this my career with more practice.
This summer my boyfriend and I moved from Bozeman, MT across the states to Duluth, MN, and with dang hard work, selling the heck out of myself, and a lot of down days, I got my first job as a graphic designer at Earth Rider Brewery in Superior WI this past fall. I am ecstatic and grateful to be doing something I love during my 9-5 and with my paintings and bleach-painted clothing on my off time!
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
HA! I wish. I think one thing people forget about starting your own small business is the constant ups and downs of well… everything! I do have to say that my anxiety towards uncertainty has improved greatly while running Wild Kidd Design, and I have it to thank.
The highs and lows of the year for art demand can make you feel uncertain and disappointed at times, but it has been super helpful to remember that every creator and business is going through that with you. Social media has added a whole other aspect to worry about for business owners which has its constants ups and downs, changing algorithms, and rotating trends.
I just try to have as much fun as I can with everything I can and remember that a good day is coming.
Moving cities is hard, and moving cities as a somewhat-established artist are very difficult. I had such an amazing group of artists in Bozeman to work with, collaborate with, and love who are the best connections for art markets and life. It has been a hard transition to start over somewhere new but I am trying to face this as a fun challenge I am ready for!
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
Since I have a severe case of A(rt)DD, I love to experiment with a lot of different mediums from free-hand bleach-painted clothing to acrylics to oil paintings to digital prints and even logo and branding design! The subjects I tend to work with are wildlife, women, pets, and landscapes but love a challenge.
I strive to take my conservation and outdoor knowledge and put it into my small business mission. All of my clothing and most of my canvases are thrifted so I can up-cycle them into wearable art that shows my love for nature; I use all recycled or compostable packaging and hope to soon donate a percent of all sales to a different environmental non-profit each month!
The Free-Hand bleach-painted clothes are a great way to invest in the environment while getting something 100% unique. I take a bleach mixture that I dip a paintbrush in to create a masterpiece, without a stencil, on the textile that turns out a little different from the next and can be put on any desired size.
Oil paintings are my favorite to create, the thick strokes and dimensions the paint creates are so pleasing and after only starting to oil paint in 2020 I am so impressed with my own progress.
Brand logos and designs are other things I love to create for other small businesses! Making something they love as much as I do and will uplift their brand makes my year.
So maybe we end by discussing what matters most to you and why?
Besides my loving and caring family and boyfriend, our earth. I want future generations to be able to experience nature like I have been able to my whole life (mostly in part to my awesome nature-loving parents), and I am so afraid for the future of our planet right now. One hard thing about moving on from the conservation field is that I feel like I am no longer helping aid our fight for mother earth which is why I try so hard to do everything I can to be a sustainable business.
There is nothing that clears my mind or reminds me of life’s pure simplicity like the outdoors. Living near some of our country’s most beautiful national parks was such a gift and I did not take one second for granted, it reminds you how small you are and how fragile those beautiful places are.
Contact Info:
- Website: wildkidddesign.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wild.kidd.design/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/artkiddstudio
