ARTIST OF THE MONTH: HANNAH WILLIAMS
March 1, 2026
Written by Olivia Elizabeth
Headshot by Taylor Doyle
As we enter the third month of 2026, we are proud to present our March Artist Of The Month- Queensbury, New York native and muralist, Hannah Williams. After spending the majority of her life in the arts, she knew being creative was her passion. Williams struggled to find her footing, caught between a traditional career path or one that fueled her. With a strong support system and relentless determination, Hannah was able to make Art her full time career. Through her murals, live wedding paintings, public art consulting, youth mural programs, and commissions, she has been able to bring her work to life. Fortunately, we were given the chance to discuss and reflect on her career. We are elated to showcase her hopeful demeanor and fearless ambition to one day paint a skyscraper, as well as how her identity, experiences, and relationships have bled into the voice of her art.
Foothills of the Adirondacks
Photos by Greg Barrett
PETTY: How is Hannah the artist different from Hannah the person? If at all.
WILLIAMS: I have never been asked this question before. It was so good that I had to really sit with it for a while. At face value, I had never considered the connection, or possible disconnect between the two. Art has been my form of expression since I was a child, so it has always felt interchangeable with who I am. But when I truly reflected on it, I realized there has been a difference between me as a person and me as an artist.
Creativity has always been my way of coping with the world. I can admit that I’ve used art as a crutch at times to help heal my wounds. Because of that, I believe Hannah the artist has been my ultimate alter ego. When I am in that space of expression, nothing holds me back. I feel my most confident. I am fearless, confrontational, emotional and authoritative, all of the qualities I’ve admired in others and longed to embody more fully in my personal life.
I struggled for a long time to find my voice and to step into my power as a woman. The parts of me that felt hesitant or restrained in everyday life were able to exist freely through my art. And it feels really good to admit that now. Now that I'm in my thirties, I’ve begun to feel more like myself than ever before. The line between Hannah the person and Hannah the artist is no longer divided, they are finally intersecting in a beautiful way.
Inhale
PETTY: What does your creative process look like before and during a project?
WILLIAMS: I think it depends on the type of work I am focusing on. Whether it’s a mural project, a live wedding painting, or a private commission, I’ve developed a consistent standard in my approach that begins with initial planning. This often involves gathering ideas or researching a specific subject.
That planning phase evolves into inspiration and creative direction, followed by design work that centers the client’s goals while staying true to my voice as an artist. From there, I begin planning the execution, which involves many logistical steps like: figuring out how to scale and lay out the design, selecting materials and colors, coordinating equipment like lift rentals, and preparing the surface. To stay organized and avoid feeling overwhelmed, I regularly assess my progress and visualize the remaining steps needed to complete the piece. I rely heavily on writing detailed to-do lists and working through them methodically. This process helps me maintain clarity and momentum, and ultimately allows me to recognize when the work has reached a point where it feels complete.
PETTY: What kind of materials, from paint to brushes, do you prefer to work with?
WILLIAMS: Over the past decade, I have really honed my practice using water-based and acrylic latex paints, and I take pride in being a brush-driven artist, even within my large-scale mural work. I deeply enjoy the tactile expression and physical movement of a paintbrush because it allows me to feel fully connected to the surface. During my time working as a scenic artist, I learned how inventive you can be with your tools to achieve different textures and effects, which expanded my approach and taught me to stay open and adaptable. While brushes remain my primary tool, I also use a handheld paint sprayer to quickly saturate backgrounds or block in large shapes, then return with a brush to refine and blend, and I never underestimate the power of sponges or paint splattering to create energy and texture. These mediums can be challenging because they are designed to dry very quickly, but through years of repetition and discipline, working with them has become second nature, allowing me to work efficiently while still maintaining a painterly and expressive quality.
The Worth Of Venus
PETTY: How much creative liberty do you have in your commissioned projects? Do you ever wish you had more or less?
WILLIAMS: I had to laugh because I instantly let out a deep sigh when I read this question. It’s something I am actively striving to change, because much of my work involves collaborating with clients to bring their specific vision to life, which doesn’t always leave room for full creative freedom. Many of my murals are not necessarily what I would choose to paint on my own, although I do my best to incorporate elements I feel connected to, especially nature-based themes. Every so often, I am fortunate to work with a client who trusts my portfolio and gives me complete artistic freedom, and those experiences are the most fulfilling. In those moments, I feel fully immersed in the process without the pressure of meeting someone else’s expectations. I believe my greatest strength as an artist lies in portraiture, particularly in expressing emotion through the eyes and presence of people and animals. My hope is to continue moving toward opportunities where I am trusted to create large-scale portraits that integrate natural elements, allowing my personal voice and vision to exist more fully in public spaces.
PETTY: What is it about larger scale projects, your murals, that you enjoy?
WILLIAMS: I often joke that you have to “suffer for your art,” meaning you won’t feel truly fulfilled by the end result unless you fully immerse yourself in all the joy, pain, and struggle that come with each project. It’s not the healthiest mindset, and in the past it has led me to neglect my own well-being while working on large murals. But part of what makes this work so meaningful to me is its physical and emotional intensity. The act of painting at such a large scale has been deeply therapeutic, especially in helping me process grief. I’m drawn to the challenge of taking on something that feels overwhelming physically and emotionally, and allowing myself to move through every stage of it. Reaching the other side, and seeing what was created through that process, brings a profound sense of release and accomplishment.
Rooted In Motion
PETTY: Where is the farthest you have traveled for a project? What was it?
WILLIAMS: The farthest I have traveled for a project was to Yuma, Arizona, where I painted a residential retaining wall in a pool area. The mural was an underwater ocean scene featuring a variety of aquatic animals. Beyond that, most of my work has taken me throughout New York State, from as far north as Lake Placid and Saranac Lake to the Schenectady and Albany region. While I’m grateful for the opportunities I’ve had locally, it is a personal and professional goal of mine to expand my work more nationally and globally, and to create murals in new environments and communities.
PETTY: Does the height of a building ever deter you or is it a factor that adds to the fun?
WILLIAMS: I absolutely look at buildings and their surfaces everywhere I go and see them as potential canvases. It’s fun to experience architecture through that lens and imagine how art could transform it. Since becoming lift-certified and learning to operate a variety of aerial equipment, I’m no longer as intimidated by scale as I once was. That said, as much as I would love to paint something massive, like a skyscraper while suspended from a scaffold…the idea still makes my palms sweat. I’d never say never, but I know I would need a lot of emotional support to push through that fear.
Raven’s Vigil
PETTY: What experiences have shaped you as an artist/ impacted your art?
WILLIAMS: I would say the full spectrum of the human experience has shaped who I am as an artist. Both the profound joys and the deeper hardships have influenced my voice and perspective. Most significantly, experiences of trauma, the death of my mother, and the challenges that come with life’s adversities and past relationships have all left an imprint on me. Those experiences have deepened my emotional awareness and continue to inform the way I create.
PETTY: Is there someone or something that inspires you and/or your work?
WILLIAMS: In the age of social media, with infinite access to incredible art and artists around the world, I find inspiration in art and
artists as a whole. Of course, there is a traditional list of artists who have influenced me through art history, but what inspires me most is simply the awareness that there are so many talented people out there creating and expressing themselves. I try not to let that intimidate me or prevent me from creating, but instead to let it motivate and expand my perspective. It makes me feel grateful to be part of a global community of artists all pursuing their dreams. My inspiration also extends beyond visual art. I am deeply influenced by music, literature, poetry, comedy, and any form of honest expression, anything that reflects the human experience and the need to create.
PETTY: Is there a moment in your career, so far, that has stood out to be a proud moment for you?
WILLIAMS: Yes, and I often wonder if this moment will ever stop being the one I feel most proud of. So far, it hasn’t changed, because of how profound it was. There has long been this narrative of the “starving artist,” and the belief that you can’t make a real career in the arts. I know I internalized that message when I was younger, and it angered me as I tried to find my path. Some of that belief came from my parents, not resentfully, but because it was the same narrative they had been taught, one that ultimately diminished their own dreams.
That’s what makes this moment so meaningful. My proudest accomplishment was painting my first large-scale building mural in my hometown, where my parents grew up, and having my mother there to witness it. She was my biggest cheerleader. Every day, she would bring a chair and sit and watch as I transformed the side of that building. She saw firsthand the years of hardship, persistence, and dedication it took for me to reach that point.
I think often about the poetry of that time in my life, how she was able to see me step into that moment fully, and how just eight months later, she passed away. There is something incredibly beautiful about a mother being able to witness her daughter realize her dream in that way. It was a pivotal moment in my career, and a deeply meaningful moment in my life. It continues to move me, and I carry it with me in everything I do.
PETTY: What do you hope is the biggest take away when people see your murals?
WILLIAMS: All I could ever ask of someone viewing my work is that it makes them feel something. I want the work to move people in whatever way it naturally moves them. They don’t even have to like it, I just hope it stirs something inside them, evokes a thought, an emotion, or a moment of reflection. To know it created some kind of connection is what matters most.
PETTY: What does painting/art mean to you?
Goddess Of The Crossroads
WILLIAMS: Everything. It means everything to me in this life. Art has been my tool to survive. If I didn't have it I wouldn't be here.