Anna Kaufman (b. 2000) is a contemporary artist whose oil paintings and pen and watercolor drawings demonstrate her engagement with issues in environmentalism, mental health, and social justice. Kaufman sees art as a means of information sharing, connection, and empowerment in this era of polycrisis. Her work is characterized by meticulous detail, and ranges from abstract to representational. Her drawings often employ the technique of cross-hatching and what Kaufman calls “mosaic mark-making.” Often, her visual work is accompanied by audio components.
Born in Pasadena, California, Anna Kaufman received a degree in environmental studies with concentrations in visual arts from Vassar College in 2023. There, her thesis work on clearcutting in Clatsop County, Oregon culminated in her inaugural solo exhibition in Poughkeepsie, New York in 2022. For this thesis work, she was awarded Vassar’s H. Dan Peck Prize. This installation was taken across the country to Astoria, Oregon, where it was shown again in 2023 at Astoria Visual Arts during Kaufman’s first artist residency. In 2023, Kaufman received the Agnes Field Award, providing financial support for research and execution of a new body of work exploring the environmental ramifications of North America’s largest open-pit lithium mine, located in Thacker Pass, Nevada. In 2024 and 2025, Kaufman showed two new series of drawings about the lithium mine, “Kith & Kin” and “MEMORIAM,” at Confluence Studio Gallery in Astoria, Oregon, and The Hoffman Center for the Arts in Manzanita, Oregon. In fall of 2025, Kaufman attended her second artist residency at Centrum in Port Townsend, Washington. Today, Kaufman lives and works in Portland, Oregon.
BIO
CV
Education
BA in Environmental Studies & concentration in Visual Arts, Vassar College, Poughkeepsie, NY (2022)
Residencies, Grants, Awards
Centrum Emerging Artist Resident (Oct 2025)
Agnes Field Award (Nov 2023)
Astoria Visual Arts Artist-in-Residence (Jan 2023 - Jun 2023)
Environmental Studies H. Dan Peck Prize (May 2023)
Solo Exhibitions
Uprooted — Astoria Visual Arts, Astoria, OR (Mar 2023).
A multimedia installation about clearcutting and old growth in Clatsop County, OR.
Uprooted — Vassar College, Poughkeepsie, NY (Dec 2022).
A multimedia installation about clearcutting and old growth in Clatsop County, OR.
Group Exhibitions
The Davis Ridge Project — Confluence Studio Gallery, Astoria, OR (Nov 2026)
A collaborative exhibition about an ongoing clearcut in Clatsop County, OR.
Word and Image — Hoffman Center for the Arts, Manzanita, OR (Nov 2026)
An ekphrastic exchange between a visual artist and literary artist.
Small Wonders — Gallery 114, Portland, OR (Jun 2026)
A juried exhibition featuring “small wonders” no larger than 12”x12”.
Fish & Form — Astoria Visual Arts, Astoria, OR (Feb 2026)
A community exhibition celebrating Astoria’s aquatic residents.
Dark Hearts — Confluence Studio Gallery, Astoria, OR (Feb 2026)
An invitational exhibition exploring the dark side of love.
Violet — Hoffman Center for the Arts, Manzanita, OR (Jan 2026)
A community exhibition featuring works with the color violet.
Layered Perception — Blackfish Gallery, Portland, OR (Jan 2026)
A juried exhibition exploring the complexity of the subjective.
A Generous Queendom — Verum Ultimum Gallery, Portland, OR (Dec 2025)
A juried group exhibition exploring femininity, mythology, and storytelling.
Bodies and Borders — The 109 Gallery, Chickamauga, GA (Oct 2025 - Jan 2026)
An online exhibition by Women Eco Artists Dialog’s (WEAD) exploring the intersection of bodies, ecology, and agency.
Memoriam — Hoffman Center for the Arts, Manzanita, OR (Apr 2025)
An exploration of memory and grief in the era of climate crisis, expansion of a series on Thacker Pass.
Pier 11 Studios Invitational Exhibition — Pier 11 Studios, Astoria, OR (Feb 2025)
A group exhibition featuring several Clatsop County based artists, celebrating the grand opening of Pier 11 Studios.
Kith & Kin — Made in Astoria, Astoria, OR (Aug 2024 -Sep 2024).
A mother-daughter show with Denise Monaghan. The show reflected on the abuse and commodification of the natural world through drawing and audio components.
I Want to Tell You About My Body — Astoria Visual Arts (Jan 2024). A joint exhibition with artist Amelia Santiago. This exhibition depicted several enlarged prints from a longer graphic poem in the works.
Made in Astoria — Made in Astoria, Astoria, OR (Jun 2023 - Sep 2023)
A group exhibition featuring a collective of Astoria-based artists in this inaugural show.
Beyond Recognition — Vassar College, Poughkeepsie, NY (Dec 2022)
An exhibition featuring works by students in the art intensive/major program.
Artist Talks
Hoffman Center for the Arts: “Memoriam” — Manzanita, OR (Apr 2025)
AVA Board Member Party: “Uprooted Installation Project” — Astoria, OR (Mar 2023)
Vassar Thesis Presentation: “Uprooted Installation Project” — Poughkeepsie, NY (Dec 2022)