About Tanja
For over a decade, Tanja Hassel has been bringing joy and happiness into the world through bold, expressive animal paintings.
After moving to the UK from Germany in 2004, Tanja first studied psychology with the Open University, while slowly exploring art in her spare time. In 2009, she created her first “Mosaic Painting,” as she would later refer to her vibrant pieces. The painting of a giraffe, called Zoo ZOOM, sold right away—yet more paintings in Tanja’s signature style had to wait until 2012 to finally come to life. Since then, Tanja has built a thriving art career that celebrates wildlife with an energetic and contemporary twist.
Known for her dynamic use of colour, Tanja’s work captures the spirit and personality of each animal, making every piece feel alive. Rooted in both observation and imagination, her paintings blur the line between realism and abstraction, reflecting an artistic foundation shaped by extensive classical training and a playful, joyous nature.
Tanja studied oil painting under master painter Rosa Branson MBE, spent years copying Old Master works in London’s National Gallery and at the Kunstpalast in Düsseldorf, and later honed her skills in classical drawing at the London Atelier of Representational Art (LARA).
These experiences continue to shape her approach, infusing her expressive style with structure, clarity, and a deep understanding of form. Each piece reflects her fascination with the natural world and her instinctive approach to storytelling through paint. The result is art that resonates with collectors and animal lovers alike—dynamic, soulful, and unmistakably hers.
Tanja’s main aim is to bring happiness into people’s lives through her art—to make viewers smile and forget about their problems for a while. She calls her distinctive paintings “Happiness Anchors” because they offer a source of calm and joy in their new homes. Collectors connect deeply with their paintings and often share updates with Tanja about artworks they purchased even years ago.
Happiness Anchors are held in private and corporate collections around the world, in homes and offices from the UK and Europe to North America and beyond. Tanja continues to grow her international audience while staying grounded in her passion: creating art that connects, uplifts, and inspires.
Her passion for wildlife art has earned Tanja recognition in prestigious competitions, including being a finalist in Wildlife Artist of the Year 2024, being long-listed for Sketch for Survival 2024, and winning the Pollyanna Pickering Living World Award for Artistic Excellence 2024 from the Association of Animal Artists. As part of the award, Tanja will have the honour of showing her winning painting, Tree Frog II, alongside Pollyanna Pickering’s work at the June exhibition at their gallery in Derbyshire.
Tanja is very excited about this opportunity and is especially glad to be showing a red-eyed tree frog on this occasion. Tree frogs are one of Tanja’s favourite animals to paint—right after the mythical phoenix (which doesn’t really count). Overall, though, she enjoys painting all animals, highlighting their character and personality.
They are always smiling, too. Even when Tanja’s art was more abstract, she managed to give her animals a friendly expression. Her style evolved during her studies at LARA, when Tanja started using shadow shapes to create more depth in an otherwise flat image. Her work developed further when she began placing two animals together in one painting, experimenting with their positions and interactions.
Tanja mostly builds her animals from multiple reference points and sketches, rather than working directly from one image. This helps make the animals feel alive.
