Meet Tanya Hazlewood, an artist with a wild child spirit. She is an eclectic painter and has pursued her imaginative side since she was a child. Tanya paints pallet art, commercial signs, and wall murals. She also face paints, paints vehicles, rocks, and everything in between. In the near future, she plans to airbrush shirts and tags and she’s looking into tattooing. Drawing and creating were some of her very first memories. In the 4th grade, Tanya was assigned to create a short story and she chose to draw a crocodile riding a skateboard. She submitted her work and was pulled aside by her teacher to tell her she was very talented. Growing up, Tanya’s dream was to be an art teacher. Her goal was to attend an art institute but life got in the way. Today, Tanya stays busy with her art business, Wild Child Artworks, and hosting paint nights. She says hosting paint nights are a dream come true. You can find Tanya driving around in her own artwork, a colorful van she painted. She tells us it’s pretty awesome to drive around in a piece of her own artwork. Learn more about this artist with our Q&A:

How do you describe your art? A mesh of my wondering thoughts, other people’s input and life.

What inspired you to choose the business name, Wild Child Artworks? I have always been considered a WILD CHILD lol, also, I have 5 granddaughters that are so similar to me and they are wild too! It just fit.

How do you describe your palette? Very eclectic

What is your greatest accomplishment? In life? Surviving…..in art, I did a piece for a VT auction that went for $1,500. That kind of blew me away considering im just a small timey artist.

What obstacles do you need to overcome to find your creative space/muse? When I paint is the only time my brain is still. I am at peace and focused. I go into another realm it feels like. It’s more therapeutic to me than anything. If im upset or stressed I find it hard to create.

How do you find your inspiration? Just living. Everything I see in the world is art to me. I take a lot of photos because I want to capture the beauty of life.

What advice do you have for other artists? Just stick to being you and your own style, NEVER compare your art to others!

What is your favorite piece(s) you’ve made and why? My self-portrait. Because I feel like I’ve overcome so many things and finally am comfortable being me.

Do you have art avail for purchase? If so, how can our readers purchase your pieces? Yes, facebook @wildchildartworkswv and instagram @wildchildartworks 

– HashtagWV #107. November 2018