Few artists can duplicate the emotional depth Steve Hanks achieves in his spectacular watercolors. Each painting is meticulously drawn with great attention to detail, reflecting a moment in time, often a token of the artist’s memory. The viewer’s reward is a grand interconnection with the artist’s favorite moments, all familiar to our own experiences as well.

Hanks, whose artwork primarily reflects women and children, spent his childhood on the coast of California. His inspiration to paint developed in his later teens, after his family moved from Ventura County, to New Mexico. Away from the ocean and his friends, Steve found comfort in drawing and painting. After graduating from high school, Hanks entered the University of California at Berkeley in the 1960s. Later, he attended the Academy of Art in San Francisco, and graduated from the California College of Arts and Crafts in Oakland.

In 1973, Hanks began publishing a few of his originals as stone lithographs, posters, and limited edition prints. Today, represented by Hadley House, Steve Hanks continues to paint numerous, beautiful works that reflects a mastery of form and an intricate involvement with light. Highly detailed and realistic, his watercolors urge the viewer to become part of the creative process. Mr. Hanks is passionate about life and passionate about art. “I try to capture a certain introspective solitude in my figures”, he comments, “and deal with a vulnerability that all of us, sometimes, feel.”

  Steve Hanks calls his style ‘emotional realism’. He often leaves the faces of his figures obscured or turned away, not only to leave the face to the imagination of the viewer but also to allow the entire figure to express the emotion. Backlighting is also a signature element of his style. “Sunlight has become one of my favorite subjects. I’m fascinated by how it filters through things, how it floods a whole room with color. Often my paintings are really more about sunlight than anything else.” His marriage to Laura and the arrival of three children provided new inspiration for the artist. Many lovingly rendered domestic scenes were added to the portfolio during those years.