Anna Sellheim

About the Artist

Anna Sellheim is originally from Washington DC. She earned her MFA in comics from the Center For Cartoon Studies in 2016. She has been published by the Nib, Oni Press and Seven Days (Vermont’s Alternative Weekly Newspaper). She also has contributed to a number of anthologies, most notably Dirty Diamonds and Comics For Choice. She has taught adult literacy in DC to native English speakers that read below a 6th grade level, and has taught art and comic classes throughout The DMV Area and New England. She is now the Community Art Collaborative AmeriCorps staff at the Refugee Youth Program, where she teaches art and comics to refugee youth ages 5-21 throughout Baltimore City. Her work primarily deals with mental health, trauma, and the healing power of art.

Artist's Statement

My work for years has touched on mental health, but as my physical disabilities worsen, the relationship I have with my physical body is something I have been exploring in my art. I have been on a lifelong journey navigating my rapid cycle bipolar disorder and my brittle bone disease. I am currently working on a graphic novel that explores my relationship to art, both that I consume and create. Creating art is my most important type of self care. My artistic practice has helped me build a community of people that can empathize with my experiences and share my values. My art has raw elements to it that are not talked about in polite company but breaches topics that need to be discussed such as abortion, loneliness, bullying and mental health. People have appreciated my work and were able to see that I was accessible and relatable as an artist and person.  I believe art should be accessible, it helps build community and gives underrepresented and stigmatized populations a chance to be heard and seen. I have contributed work to the Comics For Choice Anthology that raised over $30,000 for the National Network Abortion Fund. I am currently the Community Art Collaborative (CAC) AmeriCorps staff at the Refugee Youth Project, where I teach art and comics to refugee youth ages 5-21 throughout Baltimore City. My goal when teaching students is to help nurture a safe space for them to create their own healing creative practice. I focus less on the technical skills and more on teaching them how to find and express their unique creative voice. Comics are particularly good for this population because it is not a means of self expression but also helps these refugee youths practice writing in English.  One of the projects I created with my high school refugee students was the RYP Zine. It is a 28 page full color anthology of their art and writing, giving them control of their own narratives and expressing their wholeness as human beings and individuals. Funded by the MICA Community Engagement Grant, it now has a distributor and the sales have earned hundreds of dollars towards the student’s snack fund.