About Carl

Carl Hansen is a humble cartoon illustrator who has been drawing since he was four. In total, he has been drawing for about 80 years. In his youth, Carl was influenced by comic books published by Dell Publications. Once a week, his mother would buy a comic book from the stand at the grocery store, and Carl looked forward to these weekly gifts. His favorite characters were Donald Duck, Barney Bear, and Henry Hawk. He could relate to Henry because this character often failed and would become frustrated in the process. It helped him feel like he wasn’t the only one struggling to get things right. Giving advice, Carl said that people relate to characters who struggle.

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If you are in school and enjoy drawing, Carl wants to encourage you to try different drawing styles and projects. In grade school, he illustrated and wrote about an imaginary Native American tribe called the Surinee who lived with the Chippewa in the 1800s. Later in his life, he created a political cartoon whose main character was named Stoopy. He also drew to help himself cope with loneliness. During this time he tried his hand at writing, and composed a 2400 page novel called “The Dress Code.” 

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Carl shared that he was comforted by knowing that God had given him a unique gift that was both “cleansing” and “healing.” Drawing released negative thoughts and emotions and helped him deal with hurtful people in his life. 

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 Carl shared that as a ten-year-old, his aunt paid for him to go to the Layton School of Art. He didn’t go for a long period of time, but was thankful for the instruction he received and for the unexpected opportunity. Carl had his own drawing desk when he was ten. You might find it surprising that he still draws on that same desk at 86 years old. Could you imagine if that desk could talk? Oh, the stories it would tell of all the fantastic characters that Mr. Hansen has drawn. 

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This kind-hearted illustrator kept things simple and drew with lead pencil and paper. He didn’t start to use color in his work until he was about 60 years old. The change came as a friend suggested he add color to his drawings. Additionally, Carl would draw on whatever paper was available. Several times he recalled drawing on a packaging material called butcher paper.

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If you are thinking that Carl drew every day, you will be surprised to find out that he went many years without drawing at all. In contrast to these breaks, Carl shared that practice over time is the key to success. When he was drawing daily, he could draw a “storefront” of people in a single day.

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Carl became the illustrator of the Sock Finder Series in an unusual way. He was sitting next to Keaton Boggs at a men’s Bible study. Keaton had been looking for an illustrator for the books. Keaton saw a sketch of the group of men in the study that was amazing, and asked Carl if he could draw animal characters. He didn’t hesitate to say, “Yes!” Carl ended up illustrating books 2-7 in the Sock Finders series. He has also illustrated the book “Jesus, My Forever Friend.” Who knows what he will illustrate next?

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In summary, Carl has drawn most of his life. He has never been recognized for his drawings, nor was he seeking to be recognized. His humble and grateful nature made him content to be thankful for his talent. When he saw his drawings published in a book for the first time, his eyes welled up in grateful tears. New budding artists could learn much from this artist and man.