Amy Davison

Artist/Photographer Amy Davison was gracious enough to make time for an interview. I wanted to talk to her about her life as an artist and how it relates to her future career path as an anthropologist. It amazes me throughout history that we have not seen or heard of very many female artists. Most renowned artists throughout history have been men.

History discusses several artists such as Picasso, Michelangelo, and so many more. Now it seems that women artists on the rise and their talents are compelling. “I wanna grab a hold of everything and do it if its art related,” was something that Amy said with an enthusiasm unlike any I have seen. The passion she displayed helped paint a picture not unlike a “paint by numbers” image in my mind.

When I asked her what kind of artist she saw herself as, her answer was “painting and photography are my two main passions.” We see a lot of photographers and artists out there in the world today. Is that due to the technological era? Is it due to the women’s rights movements? We can all speculate and come up with our own answers. What excites me is the art that is surfacing today because of the changes that have allowed it.

Art is everywhere and has been a part of every culture throughout history. Art is a subject that overlaps other fields of study due to what can be discerned from the study of it. In an interview with established artist and professional photographer, Amy Davison we discussed a lot about this matter.

Amy doesn’t limit herself to a single medium of art. When asked where she would categorize herself as an artist she said, “—I mostly would say painting and photography.” Amy’s reputation has grown to such a point that she had to start going by her legal name to prevent those with identical or similar names from “piggy-backing” off of her fame. Formerly known as Amy Wenzel, I noted there was yet another Amy Wenzel established as a professional photographer. One thing history shows us is that women had a difficult time becoming established and known to the world.

Among the many artists to choose from throughout history, Amy’s favorite is Salvador Dali. We all have icons we look up to that fuel our passions. A lot of Amy’s work captures hints of many different artists of history and yet stands out as her own signature work. I asked her if she had a favorite piece that she created. Her response began with, “ooh… that is tough!” After her stating that she loves to paint and draw a lot of different variations of “fandom art” her final response was intriguing! “Yes, I think my favorite piece is one I painted of my husband and son walking along the beach because it’s from one of my favorite pictures I’ve ever taken—so it’s kind of combining two of my loves and it just turned out really great.”

An interesting fact about Amy is that she began attending the Portland Art Institute for a Bachelor’s degree in advertising prior to switching to Southern New Hampshire University where she is now working towards her Bachelor’s in Anthropology. She claims that “ever since I was a kid I’ve been obsessed with mythology and cultures and stuff,” which led to her new passion of anthropology. The link between history, cultures and art has come together through the field of anthropology. It allows us to try and understand ancient as well as modern day cultures and their developments.