Meet Anise Aiello | Teaching Artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Anise Aiello and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Anise, is your business focused on helping the community? If so, how?
As an artist, my primary goal has always been to develop a platform for health advocacy within the creative industry. Stemming from my time working in the reproductive health field, science, social justice, and public practice are critical motives to my making. This work has always translated into my career as an educator. From teaching in rural Wyoming to Los Angeles with NASA McREL, I believe each young learner should be granted the equal opportunity to learn about the symbiotic relationship between art and science. Recently, as I have begun prioritizing teen programs, I have noticed a greater need for young adult support. In today’s world, which is so technology-dominated, I like to get kids unplugged to create, connect and communicate with others.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
As an artist, my practice aims to normalize difficult conversations about health equity and advocacy. My artistic interest in health advocacy stems from my background in reproductive health and family medical history. In 2020, I began a project called the Mammography Quilt project. During the pandemic, I completed a 9-foot by 13-foot quilt image with 20 years of family mammography and diagnostic films. The backing, a gradient of surgical scrubs, now houses over 200 publicly submitted names of individuals who have faced reproductive health care challenges. This past year, I had the opportunity to exhibit the quilt in Seoul, South Korea, where more names and contributions were added to the project internationally. 

When I began to connect art and reproductive health, I was working at Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains during a time of extreme violence and political unrest. My work has always faced controversy and backlash. However, my goal has remained the same: to bring comfort, care and beauty to such a divisive issue. I learn something new each year as I expand my artistic and teaching practice. I constantly ask myself questions about sensitivity and comfort and often feel like I am walking on a balance beam between abstraction and reality. Creating new work is never easy, and often physically and mentally taxing as I am a little lady making big art. Along the way, I have learned to listen to my viewers. From crying to hugging, I have experienced many different responses, all of which inform the next project. Whether you believe in the subjects I am highlighting or not, I aim to create comfortable, beautiful environments for all to enjoy. One day, I hope the world can see reproductive health care as a simple and equitable right. 

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
My best friends from Los Angeles visit me every couple of months. We always hang out in the city perusing the Brass Armadillo, attending art exhibitions at Space Gallery, and visiting our favorite restaurant, Trattoria Stella. The one thing I have never done is take them on a proper trip to the mountains! Now that I  have upgraded my car, I am excited for our next visit. My favorite Colorado road trip is the trek to Telluride. On the way home, it is easy to go a little out of the way to hit the Sand Dunes and Durango. I have done this trip once during spring, and it was the most fantastic tour of the Colorado landscape. I hope to get my LA friends out of the city on their next visit!

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I want to shout out the remarkable staff of the MSU art department! I began my college journey in 2017. I had the extraordinary experience of attending Mill’s College in Oakland, California, for three and a half years before its unfortunate closure in 2017. Amidst the onset of the Pandemic, I found myself extremely confused about how to complete my degree. After transferring to another private institution in the Bay Area, and experiencing another campus closure, I was lost. It was with my mom’s helpful advice that I applied to MSU and returned to Colorado. At MSU, I was finally granted the support to finish my degree and got paid to do it! At MSU, my art practice and critical thinking grew exponentially. There, I met staff members who thoroughly cared about my success as both a student and a working professional. After three schools and 8 years, I graduated this past fall and am incredibly proud to be an MSU alumni!

Website: https://aniseaiello.com

Instagram: @aniseaiello

Other: https://mcadenver.org/teens/teen-moxiemag