Renee Hanson is from Lawrence, Kansas and now resides in Austin, TX. She received her MA in Latin American Studies from the University of Kansas, with a special emphasis in Amazonian ethnobotany. Currently, she works as the Director of Development for the Austin Child Guidance Center in Austin, TX.
Her work is heavily influenced by her travels in Peru, Ecuador, Costa Rica, Mexico, Puerto Rico, and Cuba. Her work is often inspired by the esoteric, naturalistic world as she incorporates the earth’s foliage within abstract shapes, patterns, and designs. All pieces hold symbolic meaning of people, places and situations of her life. Each piece in this series is highly texturized, almost 3 dimensional, which allow the figures in the paintings to still be seen when the lights are off or in lower lighting. This is what is most interesting about this type of technique; each piece yields to a different feeling as the light of day fluctuates upon its surface.