Lys Hansen (born 1936) is a Scottish artist regarded as one of the country's most important figurative expressionist painters.[1][2] She currently lives and works in Braco, Perthshire.[3]

Lys Hansen
Born1936 (age 87–88)
Falkirk, Scotland
NationalityScottish
Websitehttps://www.lyshansen.co.uk/

Early life and education edit

Hansen was born in Falkirk and grew up in Alloa.[2][3] Hansen studied at Edinburgh College of Art from 1955 to 1959 before continuing to attend the University of Edinburgh where she studied fine art in 1961.[2] After studying art, Hansen trained as a teacher.[3] She has travelled and worked across Europe, including to France, the Netherlands, Ireland, Germany and Denmark.[4][5]

Career edit

Hansen was working in Berlin when the Berlin Wall came down, greatly impacting her creative direction.[2] Her work is often considered introspective and challenging.[5] Often working in paint, Hansen explores the human condition in her work.[6] Having previously exhibited her paintings, Hansen exhibited her drawings for the first time in 2012.[7] A sculpture in wood by Hansen formed part of an exhibition at the Kunsthuis Gallery, Yorkshire, in 2016.[8]

Hansen is recognised for her work in supporting other artists.[6] Her work has also inspired the poem Warpaint And Womanflesh by Scottish writer and Scots Makar, Liz Lochhead.[9]

Hansen was the subject of the book, Passionate Paint: The Art of Lys Hansen, published by Mainstream Publishing Ltd in 1998.[10]

Hansen is a past president and current member of the Society of Scottish Artists.[11]

Selected exhibitions edit

Selected awards and recognition edit

Works in public collections edit

Pieces by Hansen are held in several public collections, including the following works,

Title Year Medium Gallery no. Gallery Location
Act I Scene II (Duet) 1987 oil & pastel on paper 2009.1 University of Stirling Scotland
Berlin Diptych: Look and Listen (left panel) 1993 acrylic on canvas AYRAG:001993.L Maclaurin Art Gallery at Rozelle House Ayr, Scotland
Berlin Diptych: Look and Listen (right panel) 1993 acrylic on canvas AYRAG:001993.R Maclaurin Art Gallery at Rozelle House Ayr, Scotland
Lost Man 2003 oil & pastel on paper 2009.2 University of Stirling Scotland
Mary, Queen of Scots 1991 oil on canvas 21056 Stirling Smith Art Gallery & Museum Stirling, Scotland
Other Directions 2007 oil & pastel on paper 2009.1 University of Stirling Scotland
Stagefright 1984 painting - New Hall Art Collection, Murray Edwards College Cambridge, England
Stance 1983 acrylic & collage on canvas CAC1985/17 City Art Centre Edinburgh, Scotland
The Boatmaker's Fishgarden 1966 oil on canvas 1967.6 University of Stirling Scotland
The Rivals - Scarsdale (Mrs Harris 1) 1982 - - North Ayrshire Council Scotland
'Thou knowst thou hast made me with passions wild and strong' No. 2 1996 acrylic on paper 2007.206 Perth & Kinross Council Scotland

References edit

  1. ^ a b c "Lys Hansen | About". University of Stirling. Retrieved 7 November 2019.
  2. ^ a b c d e f "Lys HANSEN, (B.1936) Contemporary". www.thegallery.uk.com. Retrieved 7 November 2019.
  3. ^ a b c d "Art's grande dame gets to core of life's eternal themes". HeraldScotland. 11 July 2014. Retrieved 7 November 2019.
  4. ^ "Lys Hansen | New Hall Art Collection Website | Cambridge". New Hall Art Collection. Retrieved 7 November 2019.
  5. ^ a b c d e Dailyrecord.co.uk (20 November 2008). "Around the galleries with Lys Hansen". dailyrecord. Retrieved 7 November 2019.
  6. ^ a b c d e "Drawing Breath : Cooper Gallery : University of Dundee". www.dundee.ac.uk. Retrieved 7 November 2019.
  7. ^ "Drawing Breath - a-n The Artists Information Company". Retrieved 7 November 2019.
  8. ^ "Fields of colour to bloom at Kunsthuis Gallery summer show at Dutch House". York Press. 7 July 2016. Retrieved 8 November 2019.
  9. ^ The Cambridge companion to twentieth-century British and Irish women's poetry. Dowson, Jane, 1955-. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 2011. ISBN 9780521197854. OCLC 664450788.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  10. ^ Hansen, Lys, 1936- (1998). Passionate paint : the art of Lys Hansen. Sutherland, Giles. Edinburgh: Mainstream. ISBN 184018096X. OCLC 40887172.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  11. ^ "Society of Scottish Artists | Full List of SSA Members". Retrieved 8 November 2019.
  12. ^ "The Other Side: Karin Christiansen and Lys Hansen". Metro. 9 July 2008. Retrieved 7 November 2019.
  13. ^ "Lys Hansen: When You Reach September, Kinblethmont Gallery, Arbroath". HeraldScotland. September 2012. Retrieved 7 November 2019.
  14. ^ "Preview of Lys Hansen exhibition". Art Fund. Retrieved 8 November 2019.
  15. ^ "Arts Council - 40th Annual Report and Accounts 1984/85" (PDF). Arts Council. 1985. Retrieved 8 November 2019.
  16. ^ "Society of Scottish Artists". www.facebook.com. Retrieved 8 November 2019.

External links edit