ARMIN HANSEN

Rather than take the well trod and fashionable path to Paris for formal training in the arts, Armin Hansen choose to book his passage to Hamburg. There he was close to the roots of his family, both his father and grandfather were trained in the arts in their homeland of Germany. While at the Royal Akademie in Stuttgart, Hansen studied under Carlos Grethe, an important member of the Sezessionist Movement. There he learned to paint from the German Impressionists and developed a style that relied on a dark and more somber palate. In 1912, after six years abroad, Hansen felt it was time to take his skills back to the states. He returned to San Francisco where he was born and where his father, Herman Hansen the western painter and illustrator, was still living, and immediately set up a studio. In San Francisco he joined the excitement of the upcoming Panama-Pacific International Exhibition. Scheduled to open in February of 1915 Hansen set to work preparing paintings for submission. At the time of the opening he had six etchings and two paintings submitted. His hard work paid off with two silver medals won for his paintings. In1916, Hansen moved his studio south to Monterey. There he painted some of his most memorable and highly sought pieces. Scenes of the sardine industry with Portuguese and Sicilian fisherman going about their trade were some of his favorite subjects. His paintings from Monterey found their way into galleries up and down the coast and, on occasion, in New York. In 1948 he was given full membership into the National Academy of Design.