Annelies was born near New York City, of
European parents. Her father was born of Italian immigrants, her mother, from The Netherlands. Her family history is steeped in creativity and talent, while famous artists and visionaries
sweeten both sides of the family.
Her great-grand father was a famous chemist named Dr. Paul Oskar Kappelmeier. Another great grand father, Oskar Freiwirth-Lutzow was an established oil painter who painted for the Czar of Russia, whose famous work currently still hangs in galleries throughout Europe today. Well-known for their time, opera singers exist on both sides. She even has and (some times wears) the opera boots her great Uncle Emerico wore on stage!
Her parents followed similar leads in their
own successes, both being entrepreneur visionaries. In his earlier years, her father was well known for his award winning competitions and styling for the stars like ZaZa Gabor
and Barbra Streisand. Annelies’ mother is a self-proclaimed social scientist and retired
cosmetologist, who successfully ran her own salon business.
In 1992, Annelies began her career with
passion and devotion. Knowing that education was the key to her success,
she placed herself on the forefront of her craft and took every opportunity to
learn. At 19, she
began as an educational consultant for Zotos International,Matrix International and Paul Brown International.
For five years she traveled across the Southeast of the US and as far as
Barcelona, Spain facilitating educational seminars. Simultaneously, she tapped into
the theater world; designing hair, make-up and wigs for theatrical productions. By 24, she had designed several seasons of shows, joining North Carolina
Theater in 1996.
While designing
and working as a free-lance artist for television, film, print and theater, Annelies
continued on her path towards Broadway. Her first National Broadway Company
tour was with the ‘King and I’,
which then lead to work with stars like Petula Clark on ‘Sunset Blvd’
and Bernadette Peters with ‘Annie Get Your Gun’. Here she designed several
off-Broadway productions including ‘Amhal and the Night Visitors’ at Lincoln
Center in NYC and ‘Imperfect Chemistry’ at the Minetta Lane Theater. In
2001 she worked on the film production, ‘The Divine Secrets of the Ya Ya
Sisterhood' with
Sandra Bullock and Ashley Judd, followed by countless other films such as HBO’s
‘Iron Jawed Angles’ with Hillary Swank.
In 2000, Annelies returned to the calm(er) life in the land of tall pines and pin oaks of Raleigh, NC. She rekindled her creativity with metalsmithing in the NC mountains and began exploring her ability to sculpt with mediums other than hair, which then resulted in several successful art shows including at the Feaerington Village Sculpture Show and the Visual Art Exchange.
In September 2001, 9-11 took rocked the reality of the world, and like many others, caused Annelies to re-evaluate her life. This, coupled with other unexpected changes in her life prompted her move to Dubai, located in the United Arab Emirates in the Middle East. The experience was a journey that transformed her path, direction and passion. She vowed to make a difference in the world in a more meaningful manner.
After almost a year in Dubai, she returned to the states and began to educate through her art. She created a photographic documentary on the Middle East, Dubai into a beautiful video set to mid-east music. Her photography became an inspirational tool to explore cultural tolerance. She lectured for local schools and businesses throughout the Triangle. Dubai- Another side to the Middle East and today, has her photography hanging in the UAE Embassy in Washington DC.
The same studious creative talent that built Annelies’ past molded who she has become. She has managed to explore several lifetimes of diverse careers in 20 years time. Today, she delicately combines her skills, tools, talents and experiences to inspire, educate and create and can be found facilitating workshops in the Triangle.