Moving On: The Art of Steve Hanks
by Steve Hanks

Steve Hanks is first and foremost a figure painter. His watercolor paintings are infused with emotion and a kind of poetry formed by light and shadow in his compositions. He often paints what he refers to as "moments of introspective solitude," with deep respect for the privacy of the individual lost in reflection. Each painting holds a mystery that is also a personal story about the artist as he expresses his own emotional unfolding through art.

Just as writers are urged to "write what you know," Steve Hanks paints what he lives. When his children were born his work was filled the profound intimacy between infants and parents, the unexpected joy of toddlers, and the wonder of youngsters finding their way in the outside world.

Throughout his body of work, the study of the figure is primary and no where is this more in evidence than in Hanks' nudes. Forms are defined by light slanting through windows and sunlight through fabric or the drape of a sheet. Through Steve's mastery of composition, shadow and light, his figures emerge from the paper fully formed, unique, and mysterious.

The emotional impact of these detailed and highly realistic paintings is undeniable. Whatever the subject—children, families, women, nudes, landscape, moving water, or textile patterns—the paintings are also about light and shadow, and reflect a personal challenge, pain, or joy of the artist.

The paintings in this volume represent the most extensive collection of the artist's work in over ten years. Some time after his divorce in the 1990s, Steve began a series of paintings about healing. The paintings in this series are both deeply personal in their symbolism of the artist's own life and universal in their emotion and experience. "I want my whole body of work to tell a story when I'm gone," says Steve. "It will tell the story of my life emotionally."

Steve Hanks is the premier artist working in the technically-demanding field of realistic watercolor figure painting today. His astonishing realism comes from a skillful control of washes, edges and layers, and his knowledge of the properties of water and pigment. "Now I understand how to gain control by letting go," says the artist. "I just want to be part of the ride."

Greenwich Workshop Press Hardcover Book:
11" x 14", 176 pages
Hardcover, jacketed, shrinkwrapped
Over 160 full color paintings
ISBN-10: 0-86713-098-9
ISBN-13: 978-0-86713-098-0
$85 | $110 CDN | £55

Arriving November 2007

To Dance Before the Sea & Sky
by Steve Hanks

"I believe that art can be more than just pretty pictures. Art should bring comfort to people. It should be by our side when we go through good times and hard times," says Steve Hanks. "Art should elicit a thought provoking examination of one's own life and place in the world."

"We all experience pain, but there are great moments of pleasure all around us too. These moments may often be fleeting and get by us before we are able to fully comprehend their beauty and importance. I have tried to capture a few of these moments in paintings that can be savored for years to come."

The beauty of this joyful moment is infectious. Steve Hanks has succeeded in capturing that perfect, uplifting energy in To Dance Before the Sea & Sky.

Greenwich Workshop Fine Art Giclée Canvas:
limited to 75 s/n.
26"w x 24"h.
$695 | $765 CDN | £390
Ask About Availability

Greenwich Workshop Fine Art Print:
limited to 550 s/n.
17"w x 16"h.
$165 | $180 CDN | £100
Ask About Availability

Arriving September 2007

Also by Steve Hanks...
Listening to the River by Steve Hanks Print