In a new Harper's Bazaar profile, artist Anna Marie Tendler reflected on her divorce from comedian John Mulaney.
For context, John and Anna Marie announced their divorce in May of last year after six years of marriage. “I am heartbroken that John has decided to end our marriage," Anna said in a statement. "I wish him support and success as he continues his recovery.”
Then, in September, John confirmed that he was expecting a child with Olivia Munn on an appearance on Late Night with Seth Meyers. "Since last September...I went to rehab in September, OK? I got out in October, I move out of my home from my ex-wife," he explained. "Then, in the spring, I went to Los Angeles and met and started to date a wonderful woman named Olivia. I got into this relationship that's been really beautiful with someone incredible. And we're having a baby together."
Now, speaking to Harper's Bazaar about the divorce, Anna Marie said, “Everything that has transpired has been totally shocking and I think surreal.”
"In a way, I feel like, well, it can only go up from here, because I reached the depth of where I could go.”
“I feel so lucky that so much of my work is this mundane, detail-oriented handwork. I’m working with a needle and thread, and it’s like, if I’m not on it, I’m going to prick myself with a needle and fuck something up," she continued. “Just have your whole life fall apart and then develop a hand skill!”
When asked about one of the most-discussed aspects of her divorce — John's previous statements about wanting to be child-free — Anna Marie said that she “always held partnership above having kids.” However, she is currently planning on freezing her eggs.
“There were things I never even thought about before because that was just a closed door. So now that it feels like not as much of a closed door, it’s something that I ruminate on a lot,” she continued.
Anna Marie lives in a house in Connecticut that she and John bought in June 2020, which you might recognize from her artwork — but she has only ever lived there alone. The French bulldog she shared with John, Petunia, is mentioned in the profile, including "a painting of Petunia that someone who was a fan of John’s painted and then gave to him at a show" placed on a windowsill. When asked if John would want the painting, Anna Marie replied, “I don’t think so.”
However, things are starting to look up for Anna Marie after all the heartbreak of 2021. "I feel lucky that I get to be standing on the precipice of all of these new things, that I get to possibly experience, and who knows how they will go?" she added. "And there is certainly something exciting about that.”
