A modernist aesthetic informs April Hankins’ abstract work. Loosely improvisational, strong in gesture and brush mark, her paintings evoke a strong sense of place; referencing locale with a complex palette. Prior to receiving her BFA from Massachusetts College of Art, April Hankins took time from her studio practice to initiate and direct the Boston exhibition of Judy Chicago’s The Dinner Party, now permanently housed at the Brooklyn Museum.   For her work in the Yale School of Art MFA program, Hankins was awarded the Ely Harwood Schless Memorial Prize for excellence in painting. Since earning her Master’s degree, she has been twice nominated for a painting award in the American Academy of Arts and Letters. Hankins’ work is in the museum collections of Yale and Harvard Universities, as well as the print collection of The New York Public Library. Her paintings are also in the corporate collections of Pfizer, Inc., and most recently, Host Marriott.   Having lived and painted in San Francisco for over eight years, Hankins’ work reflects Northern California’s distinctive light and color. Her San Francisco studio was part of the Hunters Point Artists Community. A vibrant aspect of the arts in San Francisco, “The Point” holds two acclaimed and well-attended open studios each year. With a studio on Navy land slated for redevelopment by the city, Hankins had been active in insuring that the artists’ studios were included in plans for the site.   In 2007 Hankins returned to New York and now paints in a Brooklyn studio. Since, she has learned a form of meditation through Isha yoga and traveled to South India for intensive practice. The artist has observed that meditation increases her awareness of the center of things and the striking contrast of an isolating periphery adding an intrinsic dimensionality to her work.   Changes in environment shape Hankins’ imagery. Living on two coasts the artist experiences a contrast of light and landscape. Her processes of painting and choice of materials accommodate an altered sense of space. As a result, her painting process has become direct, unpredictable and surprising.   The artist divides her time between New York and San Francisco. April Hankins © 2009