By Michaela Bankston
Photos by Lacey Barnwell
Anita Bice sits in the corner of her home studio. A once-blank canvas rests before her. She outstretches her arm, brush in hand, so the bristles graze the surface to energize the charcoal pencil outline.
Her artistic journey began many years ago with five words—“has an affinity for art.”
Bice’s second grade teacher wrote those words on her report card, and she continues to hone her craft today.
“I just gravitated toward it,” she said.
She sat in her first art class in middle school. In high school, she chose to take a summer school class, so she could have a second period of art her senior year.
After graduation, Bice attended Samford University to study art and business.
“I thought, ‘I can’t just plan on being an artist,’” she recalled. “‘I’ve got to have something that I can fall back on if it doesn’t work.’”
Though she planned well, she could not foresee the poor state of the economy and struggled to find a job after graduation. Graciously, her parents encouraged her to pursue art school if she desired.
Bice chose the Academy of Art College in Chicago because it was “geared more toward getting a job than just painting.” There she sharpened her fundamental skills and learned more advanced practices.
“I found that I had a knack for perspective, and I loved it, and most people hated it,” she said.
Bice’s aptitude for art and perspective led to an architectural illustrator job, creating visual representations to scale. Around that time, she got engaged to her long-distance boyfriend, Steve Bice.
The pair married and Anita found Steve a job in Chicago through a connection at church. Although within the year, they began to seek jobs back in the Birmingham area.
A few years after moving back, the couple had their first child, and Anita decided the flexibility of a freelance career better suited her. All in all, she has worked in architectural illustration for more than three decades.
Due to the ebb and flow of freelance work, Anita began teaching classes and dabbling in painting whatever she fancied.
“With the architectural, I had to be very, very careful that I am painting the architect’s vision, not what I want to paint,” she said.
With that freedom, Anita has painted a plethora of animals, sea creatures and birds. She has also painted several pots and pans, florals and landscapes.
“They say you’re supposed to stay in a niche,” Anita said. “I can’t do it. It’s whatever wants to be painted the most today.”
Regardless of the vision, Anita starts by creating a preliminary depiction on the computer. She uses Photoshop to design custom brushes to accurately portray different brush and pen strokes.
“If I’d been born any later, I probably would have been a computer science something because I love the computer,” she said. “I’m a nerd.”
Once the Photoshop version is complete, Anita adds a grid and places her tablet next to a canvas with nothing but tick marks to indicate the beginning of each gridline. From there she sketches an outline with exquisite precision she garnered through her architectural experience.
Anita said she still enjoys the technical aspect but appreciates the ability to be more creative than she could with architectural drawings.
Her architectural involvement has also influenced her use of acrylic paints.
“A lot of people say they look like oil, but because of my commercial background, I always had a deadline,” she said. “I work quick, and I couldn’t wait on the oils to dry.”
Eighteen years later, Anita’s is still painting, and her fine art has become a full time business that requires help. She did not have to look very far though.
After graduating high school, Dana Bice began helping her mom in the studio.
One task Dana helps with is scanning the paintings to print out. Those are printed on fine art paper, but many prints evolve further into wood panels or coasters—two items Steve now works on.
Once the print is affixed to the painted panel, they apply a mix of modeling paste and paint to give the piece texture.
“I didn’t want to just say I just slapped a print on a piece of wood,” Anita said. “I wanted it to look very unique.”
For the coasters, all three have their own job. After Dana prints a much smaller version of Anita’s painting, Steve attaches it to the blank and seals it with Mod Podge to prevent bubbling.
Once those dry, Anita and Steve work together to apply a resin coating. After a year of trial and error, they found the resin perfect to resist heat and keep mugs from sticking, but they were having to throw some out before it hardened.
From that, Anita further diversified her mediums and began pouring the remaining resin into molds. Once hard, she paints the resin ornaments and trinket trays with intricate or fun designs.
She does not stop there. Anita paints the back of ornaments to show what the dog, cat or bird on the front is looking at.
Her attention to detail combined with her creative spirit bring her art to life. Dana’s aptitude for numbers and Steve’s handiwork give Anita even more time to let her creative ideas flow.
“ I couldn’t do it now without either one of them,” Anita said.
While it may not take an entire village, her family’s help certainly enriches Anita’s affinity for art.
To see more of Anita Bice’s artwork, visit her website at anitabiceart.com, or find her on Facebook (Anita Bice Art).
Fun-damentals of Creativity
Anita Bice will be offering in-studio acrylic painting classes in June and July. A minimum of six people are needed for each class to make. She will offer a morning, 9-11 a.m., and an evening, 6-8:30 p.m., class on June 24 and 26 and July 1, 3, 15 and 17. For more information or to register, visit anitabiceart.com.
