Consuelo Eames Hanks - the Artist
Born in Boothbay Harbor, Maine, Consuelo attended schools in England, France, and the U.S. She received a baccalaureate degree from the Lycee Francais de New York and a B.A, magna cum laude, from Wheaton College in Massachusetts.
Her intricate drawing and detailed painting style is influenced by the work of her father John Heagan Eames, a member of the National Academy of Design and a senior member of the Royal Society of Painter-Etchers in England. She lived in the U.S., Europe, and Asia and started painting while living in Japan, studying the art of traditional Japanese ink wash painting called sumi-e with Takashitasan of Nagasaki.
Consuelo was mostly a self-taught artist and derived inspiration from many sources. Undoubtedly her favorite subjects come from sailing cruises along the Maine coast in the family’s Friendship Sloop.
Early Life
Consuelo, about age 12, in her 12 foot sailboat Mon jou-jou, which means “my little plaything.” In the summer, she and her mother, Muriel, would go on daily sails in Boothbay Harbor. Her mother would read to her (Vanity Fair and other classics) while she sailed back and forth in the harbor.
Illustrator
Conuselo illustrated books, magazines, guides and holiday cards
She illustrated the Pulitzer Prize winning book Beautiful Swimmers: Watermen, Crabs and the Chesapeake Bay, written by William W. Warner in 1976. For many years she did all the maritime illustrations in the New Yorker magazine. She has also illustrated books by Maine humorist and storyteller, John Gould, and contributed to Roger Duncan's 1992 Coastal Maine: A Maritime History. She has done illustrations for Wooden Boat Magazine and in 1981 was featured on the cover of Downeast Magazine. The Pine Tree Society has used her watercolors for many of their holiday cards.
Her Works on Display
She was a Signature Member of the American Society of Marine Artists (ASMA), with work in ASMA touring exhibits at Cape Museum of Fine Art in Dennis, MA; Vero Beach Museum of Art, Vero Beach, FL; the National Academy of Design, New York, NY; Coos Museum, Coos Bay, Oregon; New Bedford Museum, New Bedford, MA. Her work is exhibited in many local and national galleries including Mystic Seaport Maritime Art Gallery in Mystic Connecticut. She received the Award of Excellence, for the Mystic International Exhibition in 1987, 1991, 2004, and 2006. Galleries in Maine include Art of the Sea Gallery in South Thomaston, Ducktrap in Camden, Boothbay Region Art Foundation in Boothbay Harbor, and the Maine Art Gallery in Wiscasset. Her drawings and watercolors are in permanent collections in the U.S. and Europe. High-quality limited edition prints of many of her drawings and watercolors are available in galleries and fine gift shops around New England.
In Memory
Consuelo passed away at her home in Jefferson, Maine, surrounded by her family on December 1, 2015. Her husband, Ted Hanks, a noted wildlife woodcarver and painter, passed away on December 8, 2015. She is pictured here in 1991 with her husband Ted aboard Sarah Mead, their Friendship Sloop.