Desert Dusk - Contemporary Impressionism Paintings by Erin Hanson

Small Arizona Western landscape oil painting of Saguaros, by contemporary impressionist Erin Hanson.

Decorative Erin Hanson painting header

Message from the Artist

I create vivid, impressionistic oil paintings that capture the feeling of being outdoors. All my paintings are inspired by backpacking and hiking trips I have done across the Western states. My technique is executed with expressive color and loose brush strokes, in a wet-on-wet style known as alla prima. Alla prima comes from Italian, literally meaning "at first attempt" and is loosely applied to any painting that is done in a direct, expressive style.

I extensively plan out my paintings before I start painting with a brush, working out compositions and color combinations that will most effectively capture the drama of the landscape. I work with a limited palette of 4-5 colors, which I mix into a wide variety of hues and values appropriate to the scene I am creating. When it comes time to paint, I try to get the painting "right the first time," using as few brush strokes as possible to capture the immediacy and emotional movement of a landscape. The French term for this application is premier coup. You can see the texture of every brush stroke in my paintings, since I do not layer or thin my paint with turpentine. The result is an impasto oil painting that has additional depth and movement from the thick texture of the paint.

Hanging your painting

Hanging Your Painting:
My paintings are created on different types of canvases, depending on the size of the finished painting. The small "petite" works are done on 3/4" canvas or stiff canvas board. Medium-sized paintings are done on 1-1/2" deep canvas, with the painting continued around the edge of the canvas. This type of canvas can be hung without a frame, for a contemporary look in your home. My extra-large pieces are done on 2" or 3" deep canvas, which gives the large paintings more stability.

All my canvases are pre-wired and arrive ready to hang. To help keep your painting level, I recommend hanging your painting from a pair of Ook picture hanging hooks spaced apart on the wall. You can also use a small ball of museum wax at the corners to keep your painting firmly fixed in place on the wall.

Framing:

My oil paintings are offered both framed and un-framed. We are happy to help you find the perfect frame for your new painting. Smaller paintings on 3/4" canvas can be framed in any type of standard frame or in a plein-air style frame. The larger paintings, which are done on 1-1/2" canvas, are best framed in floater frames, or left to hang unframed on the wall. Floater frames are designed to cradle deep canvases: the frame screws into the back of the canvas, which allows the canvas to "float" in the frame, leaving a small gap around the painting. Floater frames can be made in a variety of finishes, including gold, silver, black, white, and in any type of hardwood and stain finish.

I offer a special type of floater frame, available exlusively from The Erin Hanson Gallery, which I designed myself to complement my contemporary impressionism paintings. These frames were inspired by the classic American impressionism frames, which have beautifully carved corners and clean lines. My Open Impressionist frames are adapated as floater frames, so they stand away from the sides of the canvas and let you experience every brush stroke in the painting. Each frame is custom-made for a specific painting, hand-carved and gilded in genuine gold leaf, and made here in the United States. Please contact my gallery to get a quote for an Open Impressionist frame for your Hanson original.

A Word on Lighting:
Your painting will look different depending on the changing quality of the surrounding light. Natural ambient light will create a nice feel for your painting during daylight hours, the colors subtly changing as the sun rises and sets throughout the day. At night, however, you will be fully reliant on artificial light to illuminate your artwork. Have you ever noticed how great paintings look in a gallery setting? Art galleries use warm or cool-toned spot lighting to accentuate the colors in the painting, and they usually intensify the light on the painting's center of attention.

You can imitate this effect in your own home by installing halogen or LED directional spot lighting in the ceiling above your painting. These lights are surprisingly inexpensive to install (an electrician can install them in a few hours), and if you wish you can purchase the fixtures and bulbs yourself online. As a general rule, use cool lighting to illuminate a painting that has predominately cool colors, and use warm lighting on a painting with mostly warm colors (the wrong color bulb can cause your painting to look "muddy.")

Many houses are already fitted with some sort of recessed ceiling fixtures. These can be adapted to directional spot lighting with minor handyman work. Even without direct lighting on your painting, however, the artwork will still present well with nearby incandescent lighting. One thing to avoid is hanging your painting behind a hanging chandelier, which will cast a direct glare spot in the middle of the painting, without highlighting the natural colors and texture of the painting. A light that is angled from above, or even from the side, will allow you to see the thick brushwork, see each subtle variation in color, and truly enjoy your painting in a whole new light.

I hope you enjoy the art!

Erin Hanson, Artist

Delivery of Your Painting:

• We offer free shipping for paintings shipped within the United States. Please contact us for a quote for international shipping.

• Shortly after you have completed checking out on the website we will provide you with a shipping date and tracking number.

• We use UPS as our shipping carrier. We have ten years of experience shipping hundreds of Erin Hanson's oil paintings across the globe, and we have not damaged a single painting in shipping.
A packaged painting
• Your painting will be safely shipped with full insurance. For paintings under 40x60 inches, we use special artwork shippers that are lined with puncture-proof Tyvek plastic (pictured above). Larger paintings will be carefully shipped in a wooden crate.

"Just a word of thanks. I am getting loads of compliments. I had it behind my desk but decided it was more inspiring in the front part of the office where I can view it on a consistent basis!! Some may call it daydreaming I call it inspirational!"
M.S., MONTREAL QC

"Your paintings hold so much life inside of them. They seem to explode with brilliance. Centuries from now your name and your art should be talked about in the same way Van Gogh's work is talked about, or Picasso, or Monet... Or Rembrandt for that matter. Throw some Andy Warhol in their too, while we're at it."
D.R., MILWAUKEE, WI

"I can't say enough about Erin Hanson's skills as an artist... her work is so vibrant, expressive and beautifully composed, there is no wonder that she is garnering much interest, and that her pictures are in museum collections. There is something truly special about her work. Erin's paintings embody the New West. Her painting of California and the desert Southwest resonate with human warmth, vitality and honesty, and are infused with technical brilliance as well. In all my years as a curator and collector, I have rarely come across an artist of her caliber."
K.R., NEW YORK, NY

View more customer feedback here!

Desert Dusk

Fine Art Prints by Erin Hanson

$230 - $520

Select Option Below:

Limited Edition of 100

Select Size

Select Frame

Total:

Price includes crating your artwork and shipping via FedEx Freight

Pay as low as $1000/mo over 18 months with Affifm

About the Painting

Bands of sunset light wash the sky with color, in this painting of Arizona. The desert landscape at dusk is saturated with rich hues and warm light. The brush strokes are loose and expressive, capturing a true impression of the outdoors.

Original Painting Size: 12 x 16 in

Year Created: 2016

About the Prints

Canvas Print, Rolled

A rolled canvas print arrives in a cylindrical shipping tube. The print will have a black border and some extra canvas to allow for stretching onto 1-1/2” stretcher bars. You can take this rolled print to your local framer for stretching and framing.

Erin Hanson canvas prints do not have texture applied - they are flat prints but they accurately capture the illusion of texture using photography.

Canvas Print, Stretched

Erin Hanson stretched canvas prints arrive pre-stretched onto 1-1/2” stretcher bars. The sides of the print are printed black. This print can be hung un-framed, as-is, or you may take it to your local framer and have it framed in a floater frame.

Erin Hanson canvas prints do not have texture applied - they are flat prints but they accurately capture the illusion of texture using photography.

Canvas Print, Framed

The framed canvas prints are stretched onto 1-1/2” stretcher bars, and then framed in your choice of floater frame (white, black, gold, or silver.) The floater frames are 3/8” wide, and there is a gap around the print, adding a total of 1-1/2” inches to the overall dimensions of the print.

Erin Hanson canvas prints do not have texture applied - they are flat prints but they accurately capture the illusion of texture using photography.

3D Textured Replica

Making giclees obsolete with the greatest technological leap since the colored printer, Erin Hanson's 3D Textured Replicas are the next best thing to an original painting. 3D Textured Replicas capture the detailed brush strokes and canvas texture of the original oil painting, as well as the vibrant colors of the original, making them the most realistic painting reproductions available with today’s advanced technology.

Limited Edition 3D Textured Replicas (edition of 100) are hand-signed and numbered by the artist and come with a Certificate of Authenticity. For the Limited Edition 3D Textured Replicas, we offer the same framing options that we use for Erin Hanson’s original oils: Gold EH Frame (burnished 23kt gold leaf floater frame with dark pebbled sides), Silver EH Frame (burnished sterling silver with dark pebbled sides), and three styles of wide, plein-air frames.

Open Edition 3D Textured Replicas are not signed or numbered by the artist. The framing options are the same as for the stretched canvas prints (silver, gold, black, or white floater frame.)

3D Print Sample

Are you curious to see (and feel) a 3D Textured Replica in person? We offer 8-inch samples for $20, including domestic shipping. Please click on the Paypal link below to place your order.

For international orders, please use the payment button below:

Money Back Guarantee

Return policy for prints: We guarantee you will love the quality of your Erin Hanson print. Every Erin Hanson canvas print and 3D Textured Replica is custom-made to order. If you are not completely satisfied with your purchase, you may return the print in its original condition within 30 days of receipt and we will gladly provide a refund, replacement, or exchange.
Exchanges/returns can be sent to:
The Erin Hanson Gallery
1805 NE Colvin Ct
McMinnville, OR 97128
If your print arrives damaged in shipping, please email photos to prints@erinhanson.com, and a replacement will be sent to you right away at no additional charge.
Click here to view customer feedback about Erin Hanson's canvas prints and 3D Textured Replicas.

ERIN HANSON has been painting in oils since she was 8 years old. As a young artist, she worked at a mural studio creating 40-foot-tall paintings on canvas, while selling art commissions on the side. After getting a degree in Bioengineering from UC Berkeley, Erin became a rock climber at Red Rock Canyon, Nevada. Inspired by the colorful scenery she was climbing, she decided to paint one painting every week for the rest of her life. She has stuck to that decision ever since, becoming one of the most prolific artists in history. Erin Hanson's style is known as "Open Impressionism" and is now taught in art schools worldwide. With thousands of collectors eagerly anticipating her work and millions of followers online, Hanson has become an iconic, driving force in the rebirth of contemporary impressionism.

Join Erin's Weekly Newsletter!