Timothy Joseph Hasenstein

Hasenstein, Timothy Joseph, 85, passed away peacefully in his sleep following a decades-long decline in his health due to prostate cancer treatment, AFib, and Parkinsons. He found in Silver City, artists of like-mind who also loved to be “up to something artistically” and the Gila Forest was a constant source of inspiration for his paintings. He was born and raised in Sheboygan, Wisconsin on the banks of Lake Michigan to Edward and Virginia (Valdes) Hasenstein on November 19, 1940. By high school he had earned a reputation as a noteworthy  artist. His high school teacher, Mr. Sang, brought to class a large piece of Teakwood which Timothy carved into an Easter Island sculpture. It was one of the many projects that encouraged his growth as an artist and helped to shape his artistic style. 

He attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where he earned his Bachelor and Master of Science Degrees in Art. While at college, Hasenstein developed a painting style that is often referred to as Abstract Impressionism, reflecting Monet’s late French Impressionistic influence as well as his mentor Resnik’s Post Abstract Expressionism. His greatest influences were Milton Resnik, who was artist-in-residence while he was doing graduate work, Warrington Calescott, and Rudolph Arnheim, author of Art and Visual Perception: A Psychology of the Creative Eye, who was also a friend and mentor of Hasenstein as well as a collector of his work. 

Timothy was artist-in-residence for grade and high schools for over twenty years through the MN State Arts Board and COMPASS. His unique and effective teaching style endeared him to students and teachers alike. Intensely creative, always adventurous, he inspired in his son the freedom to explore and think differently. His father could see things others simply could not. Whether hiking in Montana or getting sprayed by a skunk in Northern Wisconsin, Timothy always had a sense of adventure – and a deep appreciation for absurdity.  He favored nature’s icons; bones and branches and other found objects which play a predominant role in his art. Timothy gives sculptural form to the materials he uses from nature. After residing in the Lowertown Lofts, a community of artists in St. Paul, MN, he relocated to Silver City, NM in 2008. His artwork was most recently represented in Silver City by Sterling Fine Art and originally by the Seedboat Gallery.

Timothy is survived by his wife Ruth Giegerich, son Ethan Hasenstein (Liisa) and granddaughter Charlotte; siblings David (Judy) Hasenstein; and sister Deborah Schlehlein (Steve). He was proceeded in death by his grandparents Victor (Frieda) Valdes; his parents Edward (Virginia) Hasenstein; and brothers Jim (Diane) and Steve (Lorel) Hasenstein. Timothy was a Green Bay Packer fan from childhood and proudly voted against Donald J. Trump twice. He was a man of integrity, charming humor, and tremendous talent. He will be greatly missed. 

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