Ecology

Diana Hansen

The art of Diana Hansen is a unique combination of the traditional and personal. Her paintings and prints use traditional techniques and images as a framework for Hansen's own experience of the world; a view of reality that goes beyond the individual to the universal. "As an artist, I am influenced by everything," she said, "but my work actually comes from another reality. It is another way of seeing."

Ecology is defined by the Ecololgical Society of America as "The study of the relationships between living organisms, including humans, and their physical environment; it seeks to understand the vital connections between plants and animals and the world around them. Ecology also provides information about the benefits of ecosystems and how we can use Earth’s resources in ways that leave the environment healthy for future generations...

Hansen's richly textured intaglios are reminiscent of metaphysical Indian sand paintings, and many of her titles refer to Indian rituals and religious ceremonies. But, like American Indian artists, Hansen is not interested in academic imitations. She simply allows her images to appear spontaneously from her unconscious. In this way, the traditional colors and symbols of the Navajo, Pima, Hopi and other Indian tribes become transformed into a contemporary vision that uses the past to illuminate the present.

While Hansen's prints are strongly influenced by American Indian motifs, similarities to European artists such as Klee, Miro, and Kandinsky can be seen as well. This influence is even more pronounced in her newer works, which are more completely within the European tradition.