Bio
Anisa Esmail is an arts and culture writer, fashion designer, and an abstract figurative painter. Born in Alameda County, CA in 1992. She resides in Oakland, CA and works in San Francisco, CA. She has worked at The Fine Art Museum of San Francisco, Southern Exposure, and California College of The Arts. She also freelances as a dressmaker and womenswear designer. An art major at San Francisco State University, Anisa Esmail is also an active member of the arts community with previous education from San Francisco Art Institute.
A first-generation, South Asian artist whose parents lived the majority of their life in East Africa. Her dual cultural upbringing has shaped how she observes the world and is represented within her artwork. Previous design projects have included bra-making, corsetry, bridesmaid dresses, and peyote-stitched jewelry. Her designs are inspired by Alfred Hitchcock’s legendary costume designer Edith Head, with a focus on 1949 to 1973, and taking an ode to 1960s Bollywood female heroines. An interdisciplinary artist, her medium of choice ranges from collaged dried flowers to deconstructed chandeliers.
Selected Work
