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Pigment and Passion
Written By: Donna Rhodes | Issue: April 2024
Cover Artist Hannah More Hyde’s vibrant creations are a candle to counter the darkness.
Hannah More Hyde’s family tree has a creative member perched on every limb. Her father is an opera singer. Her grandfather is a sculptor. Her brother is a composer. Hannah’s a professional dancer and painter. And that’s just a few of the tree’s artistic boughs.
As a child, Hannah wasn’t an enrolled student of the arts, but she was a devotee of all the virtuosities she witnessed in her family. As her artistic interests began to unfold, she was drawn to dance and choreography. Then, personal losses pushed her toward expressionist painting.
It was in her twenties that Steven, a close friend, passed away. She shared that she felt helpless. The only thing controllable was painting, so she picked up a brush and loaded it with brilliant color. She swirled and daubed flower petals, leaves, and stems. She filled her canvas with an explosion of affection for her friend, trying to fill the huge hole he left behind.
Hannah says she relies on painting more when challenges come her way. Painting was a tremendous release when she experienced a painful divorce.
Some people go to counselors. Some climb a mountain and shout at the heavens.
Hannah blasts a canvas with brilliant pigment and passion.
In the midst of occasional pain and loss, why does she paint flowers?
She says, “There’s something I need to give others and to myself when I am creating, so I paint colorful flowers. The subject matter is bright, uplifting, peaceful. Grief is probably what made me more serious about painting. My friend, Kirsten, had cancer. I gave her a painting, a bouquet of flowers that, unlike cut flowers, would last forever. Kirsten took my painting everywhere. She’d get low, then take a look at her painting, and it was an instant mood change. Her joy made me feel worthy. What I thought was ordinary, she found life-changing. Inspired by family, I practiced daily to sharpen skills I once took for granted.”
Imagine losing good friends so early in life. But Hannah took a positive path and translated sorrow into beauty.
When you look at this month’s cover, note it is loaded with a full range of feeling. Amid exploding colors is passion and peace. It’s a reminder that life is a gift and art gives it an emotion that words simply can’t express.
Contact Hannah about commissions, upcoming events, and exhibitions. Find her through hannahmorelivingart.squarespace.com; and [email protected].
