Anna STĘPIEŃ (b. 1982), Sails of Dreams, 2026

acrylic on canvas, 40 x 30 cm, signed lower right: A. Stępień 2026

Born in 1982. She graduated from the Department of Graphic Arts at the Academy of Applied Arts in Szczecin with a Master of Fine Arts degree (2006). She is an artist by passion and profession. She discovered her passion for painting during her studies. After several years of experimentation, she developed her own painting style. She practices expressive painting, emphasizing movement and dynamism achieved through the use of bold strokes with a painting spatula. She applies paint thickly to her works, creating a visible texture in the painting.

The central theme of her work and the focus of her interest is the human figure, with a particular emphasis on women, which has resulted in a substantial collection of nudes. A characteristic feature of her paintings is the non-personification of faces, which she achieves through the use of chiaroscuro that highlights the basic contours of the face. Recently, her body of work has expanded to include pieces devoted to seascapes, animals, and abstraction.

The second sphere of Anna Stępień’s work consists of artistic explorations aligned with her profession as a graphic designer. As part of her collaboration with the renowned jazz musician Michał Urbaniak, she created an original cover design for *Urb Symphony* (2015) as well as numerous graphic works for the musician. In addition, she received an honorable mention in a nationwide competition for a credit card design for Fortis Bank.

Selected exhibitions:


– Group exhibition of posters by WSSU students (2004)
– Solo exhibition at the Hormon club in Szczecin (2007)
– Solo exhibition at Contact Caffe (2016)
– Solo exhibition titled “The Color of Women” in collaboration with Galeria Uległa (March 2017)
– Solo exhibition titled “The Color of Women” at the “Jaś i Małgosia” club-café (July–August 2017)
– Solo exhibition titled “The Art of Color” at Blanka Pawłowska’s Youth Clinic in Warsaw (January 2018)
– Exhibition of works at Cafe Mila Kawiarnia in Warsaw (2021)
– Temporary, rotating loan of works to Softwebo (from 2020 to present).