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Anna Zusman
Us and Them
The Batesville Area Arts Council presents Us and Them, an exhibition by Anna Zusman, from March 10 to April 24, 2026. Join us Friday, April 24 from 5-7 p.m. for a closing reception and a brief artist talk at 6 p.m. This exhibition is sponsored by Batesville Printing.
Artist Statement
My project, Us and Them, examines how we divide the world into “us” and “them.” It presents a house in cross-section, depicted twice: in one version, only the “good” scenes, such as a family at dinner or a girl reading, are lit; in the other, only the “bad” scenes, such as people fighting or a man watching pornography, are illuminated. The work reflects our tendency to see the good in our own communities while focusing on the problems in others.
This project considers how easily perception is shaped by what we choose to notice. I want viewers to become more aware of their assumptions and to recognize both the value in others and the flaws within themselves.
Linework plays a key role in my process. Each line carries meaning and contributes to the emotional resonance of the piece. Working digitally allows me to refine the linework so every mark serves the overall impression.
Us and Them is also participatory. Viewers are invited to reflect on a community they belong to, whether family, workplace, city, state, country, or another group they identify with, and to write down one thing that makes them proud and one issue they see as a problem.
My goal is to encourage viewers to become more conscious of the ways we divide the world, to notice the positive aspects in others’ “houses,” and to acknowledge the challenges within our own.
Biography
Anna Zusman is a visual artist whose drawings employ visual metaphors and surreal elements to comment on human condition and society. She currently lives in Magnolia, AR and teaches drawing and illustration at Southern Arkansas University.
Anna was born in the former Soviet Union and lived in New York City, Providence and San Francisco before settling in southern Arkansas in 2017. Due to her travels, she sees the world with the eye of an outsider, noticing strange things in what other people find familiar.
She earned a BFA in Illustration from the Rhode Island School of Design and an MFA in Painting from the San Francisco Art Institute. Anna’s artistic style has been influenced by sources from both fine art and illustration.
She has exhibited nationwide, including five Arkansas Arts Council Small Works on Paper exhibitions, the 2025 Irene Rosenzweig Biennial Juried Exhibition, and the Los Angeles Center for Digital Art’s 2024 Ten Artists to Watch Exhibit. Her work has been featured nationally and internationally in Direct Art Magazine, the San Francisco Examiner, and Cordite Poetry Review.
