Confidence comes from tackling new challenges. Decorah artist Hannah Tulgren has found this to be true, even if moving in new directions sometimes sparks moments of self-doubt.
“There’s always a reason to not do something, right? It’s not the right time, or I need to wait until this moment, and once I get that mural done then maybe I can do another one,” she says. “I’m just putting more trust in myself, and putting more trust into the art that I’m creating, and feeling good about it.”
Hannah’s creativity unfolds in the form of pencil drawings, watercolor projects, acrylic and oil paintings, graphic design work for brands, and even large wall murals. Each experiment expands her portfolio and clarifies her artistic vision.
For example, Hannah remembers her first large-scale mural project as “a huge learning process.” Set against a pale backdrop in the mezzanine of Impact Coffee, a busy downtown gathering spot, the artwork echoes Hannah’s whimsical floral watercolors with delicate white outlines, distinctive layers of gold and black, and a kaleidoscope of leaves and pastel blossoms.
“I’d never painted on a wall that big. I was up on scaffolding for the first time. It was a really big undertaking,” she says. “I love that mural. I grew a lot from that one.”
Lately, Hannah has tackled plenty of new growth opportunities.
In October 2024, she joined the Decorah Area Chamber of Commerce after five years with Pulpit Rock Brewing Co. In the months before that move, she helped organize an art market for the city’s Live on Winnebago event. The free music and art festival returned in September, after being paused for nearly 20 years. Hannah has also unveiled two downtown Decorah murals, including a 24-foot commission depicting a red fox weaving through a field of flowers.
Each accomplishment moves her forward.
Artistic roots
As a child, Hannah took every art class she could. She grew up in River Falls, Wisconsin, parented by a mother who involved her in craft projects and a father who was a proud Luther College graduate.
“He always wanted one of his kids to go there, and I took him up on the tour,” Hannah says.
Luther’s art program and Decorah’s small-town energy prompted her to enroll, and a Norwegian class encouraged her to learn more about her Scandinavian heritage. Hannah ultimately double majored in art and Nordic studies. Along the way, she studied at the University of Oslo.
That semester abroad – including the opportunity to explore the Lofoten region, north of the Arctic Circle – influenced Hannah’s artistic style. She started painting abstract landscapes and sketching trees reminiscent of those she saw on her travels. After graduating, Hannah further immersed herself in the culture while working as an administrative assistant at Luther’s Nordic studies center.
Today, Scandinavian threads weave through much of her work.
“The digital stuff is heavily inspired by Scandinavian folk art, but I put my own twist on it,” she says, pointing to things like clean lines, rudimentary shapes, and sprightly animals.
Nature plays a starring role in many of Hannah’s paintings. The leaves and wildflowers she notices while walking with her dog in the Decorah Community Prairie might show up in pencil drawings. From there, she washes the shapes in watercolor and later adds white highlights and ink accents.
“In some of my paintings, I’m not focused on that structure. I love the whimsy of it, and I’m not necessarily striving for this perfect line. I’m thinking it through, but I also am not as careful,” Hannah says.
Her floral watercolors and Scandinavian-inspired pieces have proven popular at The Perfect Edge in Decorah. The frame shop gallery was packed when it showcased Hannah’s work as part of a December 2024 art crawl. Residents and visitors alike love her well-priced, locally made artwork.
“She really provides a type of art that people are searching for. It’s like a modern twist to rosemaling, almost, or Scandinavian art,” says shop co-owner Jerita Balik-Burreson.
The Perfect Edge team has framed several commissions that Hannah has painted, too, including portraits celebrating treasured pets. Custom designs might incorporate local flowers or portray a pup running along a riverbed. Hannah listens to each family’s stories and chooses elements that make the paintings more memorable and meaningful.
Customers appreciate Hannah’s kindness and attention to detail.
“She’s so nice. She’s just modest, and people are drawn to that,” Jerita says.
A can-do attitude
Beer enthusiasts might recognize Hannah’s positive vibe from the social media videos she made as Pulpit Rock’s marketing manager. In addition to hosting weekly “What’s Up Wednesday” updates, she handled wide-ranging design and branding projects for the business.
Hannah shot product photography and designed stickers, apparel, and merchandise. She also turned special-release beers into playful works of art. She poured wax into the bottom curve of beer cans to create candles for an anniversary release. Some holiday-season bottles were topped with miniature gift boxes that she wrapped meticulously. (“I hid seven gifts inside of the presents on top, so people actually had to unwrap them,” Hannah says.)
Other releases were adorned with petite pinecones or itty-bitty balloons. One year, Hannah topped 125 bottles with tiny, hand-made party hats.
“I hot glued my fingers together so many times,” she laughs.
Hannah mostly worked in watercolor, oil, and acrylic before joining the Pulpit Rock team, and some of her brewery designs reflect that background. But the job also took her down a new creative path.
“At Pulpit, they said, ‘If we buy you an iPad, can you design our labels?’ And I said, ‘Sure. I’ll figure it out,’” she remembers.
To learn the ins and outs of digital design, Hannah experimented with new tools and watched videos by other artists. In the process, she created logos and labels that established a more cohesive visual brand for the business. She continues to support those branding efforts through freelance projects for Pulpit Rock.
Embracing digital art helped Hannah rethink how she approaches her personal artwork, too.
“I’m still learning a lot. I’m still figuring things out, because I’m self-taught. But mocking up murals is so much easier, and I’m able to convey my ideas a bit faster when people are looking for something,” she says. “I owe a lot of that to Pulpit trusting me with their label design. It opened up so many doors.”
A growing audience
Robert de los Rios, founder and president of The RAW Project: Re-imagining Arts Worldwide, learned about Hannah’s art when he first visited Pulpit Rock several years ago.
Robert’s Miami-based nonprofit brings professional mural artists into schools, where they lead projects that beautify walls, inspire students, and engage communities. In late 2022, Robert invited Hannah to create a mural at a Miami elementary school. Her painting puts a folk-art spin on Florida nature, with simple blooms surrounding a brightly colored pelican, alligator, and grouper. Each is embellished with flowers.
“What I love the most about the artists that I work with is that they understand the environment they’re painting. Hannah wanted to do fun, playful work at the school. The kids are obsessed with her mural. It’s one of their favorite ones,” Robert says. “It’s wonderful, colorful, beautiful, and simple. She uses the negative space very well. And the animals are adorable.”
“That was such a wonderful experience. The kids got to hang out and talk with us, and I got to meet some incredibly talented artists that do murals as a profession and travel the world,” Hannah says.
Closer to home, Hannah recently worked on a large mural in the new Sunflower Discovery Center. Designed to teach children about local agriculture and watersheds, the images include local crops and common prairie flowers, along with intricate root systems and a scattering of butterflies, ladybugs, earthworms, and other creatures.
Hannah also created the first piece in the Empower Decorah Postage Stamp art series, a public art initiative that’s bringing small displays to downtown alleyways. Her floral mini-mural hangs on the exterior of the Impact Coffee building.
Hannah’s classmates in Empower Decorah, a chamber program for young local leaders, chose her to create the mural on behalf of their class. Now, as a member of the chamber staff, she hopes to help expand the postage-stamp mural program.
In addition to shining a light on other artists, Hannah is excited to continue refining her own artistic style.
“The more you learn, the more you change,” she says. “My style is always going to change, I think. But at the root of it, I just want people to feel happy when they look at my stuff.”
Sometimes, when she takes her coffee to an upstairs table at Impact, Hannah sees customers snapping selfies in front of her first big mural. The moments are always joyful.
“If I can continue giving people that happiness, or I can make something pretty for someone’s dorm or house, then that makes me very happy,” she says. “I’m figuring it out still, but I think I’m doing okay.”
Renee Brincks
Renee Brincks (reneebrincks.com) writes about travel, nature, nonprofits, and small businesses.
To view more of Hannah Tulgren’s artwork, visit @HannahJeanStudio on Instagram.
