Today we’d like to introduce you to Elizabeth Hanes.
Hi Elizabeth, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I was born and raised in Georgia by a steelworker father and an artistic mother who encouraged fearless creativity and a love of nature. As the youngest surprise of 5 children, I spent a lot of time with my Mom. Side by side with my Mom, we religiously attended Yellow Daisy and Dogwood Festivals, oooing and aaahing over the latest unique artists and buying what we could afford (and sometimes couldn’t afford!)
I was a good student and intended to be a doctor, but after taking a ceramics class in college (at my Mom’s insistence), I decided to pursue an entirely different life. I worked as a paramedic in Gwinnett County, where I met my first husband, and created 2 masterpieces… my daughter Sarah Beth and son Jackson. I quit the fire department in Gwinnett County to raise my children and renewed my love for creating art, starting my first business as an artist in 2004, Sparkle Plenty Art. When the marriage crumbled, I had to decide if I would double down and make my living as an artist, or look for a “normal”, more secure job.
I met and eventually married my soulmate, Chuck Hanes, another local artist and together we created Beauty and Beast Art and later Chicken Tracks Art Ranch. We enjoyed collaborating on art projects and teaching teens about art as a way to express big emotions. In our down time, we spent a lot of time hiking, camping and exploring nature together. He passed away suddenly and unexpectedly in 2021 on his 61st birthday, just as we were coming out of the shutdowns from the pandemic.
For a while, I tried to create the art that he and I had been making together, but was feeling uninspired and overwhelmed. In my grief, I returned to the comfort of nature and began assembling my collections of bits of moss, sticks, bones into intricate mixed media sculptures. Combined with my love for sculpting faces, the Freaks of Nature were born. As they evolved, I realized that this art was feeding my soul and rejuvenating my spirit…my heart is still broken with loss, but I find joy in creating art again.
From art festivals all around the southeast, a couple of storefronts, active membership in my local art guild and gallery, wholesale and commission sales to private galleries, and teaching… I have made my living as an artist for over 20 years.
I especially love teaching “outside the box” people. From 10 years of running the summer pottery studio at Camp Twin Lakes ( a camp for adults and children with serious illnesses, disabilities, and other life challenges) and teaching a community funded art program for alternative school students in Morgan County since 2008, toprivate workshops, after school art programs, and summer art camps, I love sharing my experiences with art with everyone.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
My first husband left unexpectedly in 2010, when my kids were 10 and 12. I was making art to add a bit of money to the household budget, but had to turn it into enough to raise my kids and run the household.
Covid shut down art festivals (our main source of income) so earning a living during that time was difficult.
My second husband died unexpectedly in 2021. We ran our art business together as our sole means of income, so now I have to run my business solo.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
. My current body of work, Freaks of Nature, blends hand-sculpted clay forms with organic objects like bones, bark, shells, and rusted metal. These assemblages are rooted in memory, place, and a deep reverence for the wild. Each piece becomes a kind of artifact—telling stories of resilience, mystery, and belonging.
Can you talk to us a bit about the role of luck?
I am grateful for so many things in my life and feel lucky to be relatively healthy, have 2 healthy and happy grown children, a wide circle of friends and a supportive community. I love what I create which is why Im willing to work so many hours every day to make ends meet as an artist. I love my house and my pets.
I guess I feel really lucky that I was born comfortable in my own skin.
Pricing:
- Sculptural work $350-$800
Contact Info:
- Website: https://chickentracksartranch.com
- Instagram: chickentracksartranch
- Facebook: elizabeth collins hanes
