Picnic in the Park with Anya Aslanova
Anya Aslanova
Since one of her favorite things to do is picnic, we grabbed a basket of goodies from Costco (her favorite place to shop) and headed out to the riverfront with Anya Aslanova, the Art Center’s new Director of Educational Development, to find out a little more about her! Here are some of her favorites!
Tell us a little about your background.
I was born in Kiev, Ukraine and was there until I graduated from high school. During my senior year, there was a very unique opportunity for a foreign exchange program.
I was one of the 70 students accepted out of the 2,000 who applied. I spent a year here (in the U.S.) in Springfield, Ohio receiving a diploma from an American high school. That allowed me to apply to colleges here.
That was actually my lifetime dream. When I was six years old, if you asked me ‘where do you want to go to college?’, I’d say ‘in America.’ Of course, growing up in the Soviet Union, that truly was a dream; it wasn’t as realistic as it is even today.
Anya's mother, Nellie
Who is your role model?
Hands-down, it is my mother. I don’t know how she did it—letting a teenager, her only child!, go off to a different country. But she did it. Now, as a mother myself of two boys, almost ages 4 and 6 now, I really adore her for her sacrifice. I don’t know if I could what she did. I can only imagine what she must have been thinking. She wasn’t selfish; she let me go. She came over here permanently about three years ago to live with me and my family. She has sacrificed a lot to be here, including being apart from my father who has not yet been able to join us.
Nellie with Anya's son, Vlad
What was your major in college?
I attended Anderson University. My first major was Finance, thinking with the new economy in the break up of the Soviet Union that Ukraine was a new country and so people were a lot more business-minded. Entrepreneurship was starting up; nobody knew what it was. So I thought it would be good for me to learn business and finance. And I really enjoyed, and still do, that aspect of life and work.
How did you get involved in art?
Nellie, Anya's husband, Nick, with sons Vlad (left) and Dima, (right)
My campus job was working the late shift at the library. I used to go through magazines and liked doodling the different people I saw. A friend of mine, who recently had switched her major to graphic design, thought I should show my drawings to her art professor and see if there might be a future for me in art. Growing up in Ukraine, I was exposed to art history, it was just a part of my life and everyday conversation. However, last time I used a paintbrush was in my kindergarten art class. Although I knew well-known artists and could converse about various art periods, I had never, ever considered myself capable of drawing or creating any kind of artwork (hence, the original finance major). So I made an appointment with the art professor and when I met with him, he looked at my drawings very carefully. I’m sure he was trying to think of something complimentary to say because they were not very compliment-worthy. He said I had a great attention to detail. I still have those drawings. He signed me up for two art classes, 3-Dimensional Design and a general art history. And that was the beginning of a whole new life, a whole new career, a whole new perspective.
What’s one thing people may not know about you?
Well, I lived through Chernobyl. Even though Kiev, my hometown, was 100 km away from Chernobyl, we were all very affected by this tragedy. I was in grade school at the time. I don’t remember too much other than being excited about going to summer camp with all my friends for the whole summer. They actually were evacuating all the children; most of the adults stayed.
When we arrived to camp (Caspian Sea resort area), I remember going into a tent where we were checked with a hand-held device that was constantly beeping (later I learned that it was a radiation meter and it was beeping because our radiation levels were much higher than normal). We were also instructed to take off all our clothes and were given new clothes. At the time, I didn’t realize they were going to bury our clothes for safety reasons. That’s what the city officials did in the fall with all the leaves to keep the radiation levels down. When school started in the fall, some kids went back to Kiev, others, including me, were sent to other areas. My mom sent me to Russia, where her family lived. Upon my return I was stunned to find a lot of my classmates lost their hair.
Who is your favorite artist?
Because of my background, I have an interest in Russian constructivists, particularly El Lissitzky. My favorite is his “Beat the Whites.” Of course, I love Paul Gauguin. And Niki de Saint Phalle, I adore her attitude… She was bold! And I want her house!
What is your favorite band?
My favorite band is ever-changing. My old-time favorites are Luna, Gogol Bordello, Sleepytime Gorilla Museum, Faun Fables, Blonde Redhead, Blues Explosion. And, of course, I like Devo.
What is your favorite place in Indy?
I have to say Chatter Box for sentimental reasons. That’s where my husband and I met after an art opening.
Do you have a guilty pleasure?
I have lots, but none of them are guilty! If I had to choose, I’d say dark chocolate.
What are your goals for your new position at the Art Center?
The Indianapolis Art Center is a truly remarkable, and important, organization in the city. I spent seven years in marketing. I learned a lot about what this organization does for the community. So, I don’t really see moving into Education as a huge change—I’m working for the same mission and really, the same goals in mind. I see myself continuing the wonderful legacy that this organization has and has had for 77 years. I’m so proud and cannot be pleased more to be a part of this wonderful mission and legacy. I think we owe it to the community to continue to be more accessible and relevant and to excite more people about art.
Check out our video interview with Anya on YouTube!
