Anniemals Art Studios Sports the
Liveliest Window Displays in Town
By: Kathy Witt
Anniemals Art Studio may be the only business in Georgetown to feature live art displays in its front windows. The active and ever-changing displays come courtesy of three resident rescue kitties – Zorro, Gypsy and Winter – each with an eye for the creative.
“I change the window display every month,” said Anniemals owner Annie Brady. “The kitties have their own ideas of what the display should look like and change it to the way they want it.”
The studio is located downtown on Court Street in one of Georgetown’s many beautiful and historic nineteenth century buildings, an ideal setting for the award-winning artist who works in a variety of mediums: acrylic, torn paper, drawings, pastel, photography and pottery – both traditional fired and raku. A special feature of Annie’s work is that she showcases one animal each month through pieces that allow her to gain a deep appreciation and understanding of a given creature.
“I do a painting or drawing about the featured animal every day,” she said. “This way I can find out about them, what’s going on with them.”
July was frog month. August is dedicated to chickens and September will celebrate horses – an animal near and dear to her heart. Growing up, it was the horse that set Annie down her artistic path. (In fact, she recalls getting in trouble at school for drawing horses rather than doing her math.) She has pursued her art over the years and in various forms and also taught art for a time.
“I have found that you have different hats when you’re an artist,” she said. “You want to know about how things work and why they do the things they do.
“You’re creating magic, too,” she added. “You’re making someone believe that there’s an actual tree on a piece of paper. You have to be like a scientist and an adventurer.”
The working studio, a space Annie lovingly describes as crowded and eccentric, opened in 2004. Visitors to the shop find Annie’s original work on display as well as her potter’s wheel. In addition to the pieces Annie creates for her studio, she makes pottery at Yuko-en on the Elkhorn, the Kentucky-Japan Friendship Garden, for workshops demonstrating the Japanese art of raku. (NOTE: Yuko-en’s Kiln Firing demos are currently suspended. Prior to the pandemic, they took place on the last Saturday of the month.)
“Raku is a different way of doing pottery,” said Annie. “With raku, you get done in 45 minutes and you’re in touch with it the whole time.
“Also, people like to watch other people play with fire.”
Stop by Georgetown’s Anniemals Art Studio to see the pottery and animal art and to catch the artist at work. She is typically in the studio each day; however, hours do vary. If you spy movement in the display window as you stroll down Court Street or spot a contented kitty stretched out on his back with all four feet stuck up in the air, it’s just the frisky felines keeping things interesting.
See Annie’s art at the Anniemals’ website. For more information, call 502-202-0417.
Artist originals here
Love animals? Annie Brady probably has a painting or sketch depicting your favorite. Drop by the studio to see the “Anniemal of the Month” and Annie’s other original artwork.
“It’s all done local,” said Annie. “Right here, on the spot.”
- Small Anniemal Sketches – $15
- Large Anniemal Sketches – $25
- Paintings – from $50
- Pottery – from $15, depending on size
Author: Kathryn Witt
Kathryn Witt is an award-winning travel and lifestyle writer, syndicated columnist and author of several books, including Secret Cincinnati, The Secret of the Belles and Atlanta Georgia: A Photographic Portrait. A member of SATW, Authors Guild and the Society of Children’s Books & Illustrators, she lives in northern Kentucky.