No Mistakes, Just More to Work With: A Conversation with Anni Jyn
Anni Jyn is quickly becoming a favorite artist of ours. Her style is loose and raw, giving her the ability to capture sexuality in such a pure way.
In this interview, we talk about how she developed her style by incorporating mistakes into her work, social media censorship, and getting back at creeps that send unwanted DMs.
I hope you enjoy this interview with Anni Jyn.
Who are you? Introduce yourself!
My name is Anni Jyn (she/her) and I’m a queer artist from South Yorkshire, England. I’ve always been a creative person ever since I can remember. I studied art both in college and university. Back then I used to work with a lot of sculpture and photography, but drawing has always been a huge part of my process, so much so that I now consider it to be art therapy for me.
How do you structure your creative time?
I wouldn’t say it’s particularly structured! I’ve noticed if I carve out time for drawing or writing then it doesn’t flow how I want it to. I definitely create more when I’m feeling inspired and when I allow myself to be open to a new piece.
How would you describe your local art scene to anyone unfamiliar with it?
There’s a lot of street art in Yorkshire and we do have the Yorkshire Sculpture Park and the Hepworth Gallery. Think large paintings and huge interactive sculptures.
How did you first become interested in and then develop your style of art? Where do you see yourself taking your work in the future?
I’ve always been drawn to line art, something about it feels so fluid and free. I remember my art teacher in high school noticing that I’d always draw figures in pen instead of using a pencil and rubbing out my mistakes. This has been an ongoing theme for me because I don’t often see parts of my work as mistakes, I just see it as something else to work with.
As someone who makes erotic artwork, how do you handle comments and critiques of your work?
Most of my art is met with positivity by the people that support my work, whenever it’s received negatively I don’t pay that much attention to it. Unfortunately, creating erotic artwork can put you in a box to receive unwanted messages. My response to these unwanted messages is usually to screenshot them and share them on social media so everyone else can see what I have to see.
Do you collaborate with other artists?
I have collaborated with a lot of creatives across the world, this was mostly in 2020 due to lockdown. It definitely helped me feel a sense of purpose as well as keeping me connected with other artists. My favourite artist to work with is YAYA. They are a street artist and create weird, funky little creatures. Our styles are very different but we work well together and never try to force art out of each other.
Who are your influences?
As a teenager the first artists I remember becoming obsessed with have to be: Alberto Giacometti, H. R. Giger, Egon Schiele, and Peter Chung. Chung is the artist behind the show Æon Flux. Eva Hesse has been a huge influence on me too, both her sculptures and her experience as an artist in the seventies. If she was still around today I would’ve loved to meet her.
How do you promote your work?
Social media has been incredibly useful for me to showcase my work and it’s connected me to so many different people. I’m fortunate enough to have supporters across the world and I don’t think that would’ve been possible without social media.
That being said, censorship is becoming increasingly hard to navigate. I try my best to adhere to Instagram’s community guidelines but they change them so often that I find myself posting whatever I want out of spite. When Instagram started going downhill I definitely realized I had to put my art eggs in more baskets.
What’s next for you?
Hopefully a coffee table book full of art and words. I have such a huge portfolio that I’d really love to share.
Where can people find you?
I’m @annijyn everywhere and you can find my latest works and merchandise for sale at www.annijyn.com
