Museum of Contemporary Arts San Diego

Misty Hawkins

PART 2: To be a giant

Today’s “giant” of San Diego is Misty Hawkins, a painter born and raised in San Diego. Her studio space is one of our favorites—and not just because we were welcomed into it by her adorable dog, Zada. There are paint-splattered drop cloths spread across on the floor, the walls are filled with her portraits, in one corner is a WIP still life while the other corner holds stacks of sketch books from her figure drawing classes. We take a moment to look into the faces on her canvases as they stare back at us and into us.

Giants Exhibition, Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego, 2026

Misty tells us that she’s always loved to draw faces and bodies, and though she has experience painting landscapes and still life, she always returns to portraits and the figure. Each work always begins with an interest in the form and satisfying the need to express the visual pleasure she feels from it. For example, she shares with us about how her self-portrait series was inspired by a photo session that she did on her phone. Striking bold poses partially obscured by shadow, Misty explored the concept of “removing the public mask,” and in working that piece, gained a deeper understanding of herself.

“I wanna understand what all those things are that I keep under wraps or keep behind my public mask. This has been a way to dwell in that since paintings take a while to make.”

–Misty Hawkins on her self-portrait series

As Misty’s practice evolves, she still experiments with various ways to mix skin colors and different surfaces, and her process between each piece differs—something that is fun but can also feel scary, in part because of her struggles with her inner critic and how all-consuming working on a new piece can feel for her. It may help that, in addition to her painting practice, Misty teaches beginner freehand drawing and life drawing, which allows her to remember what it’s like to start with the basics. But, no matter what the process or genre, the theme at the root of Misty’s work is empathy; she wants to relate to others and hopes that they can feel what she felt while she was creating it.

“I feel like the circle is completed when it comes out of my studio or when someone sees it... they’ve seen it and they’ve felt it. That’s what I really want—that connection with another person.”

–Misty Hawkins on what she hopes people take away from her work

Connect with Misty Hawkins:

Executive Producer: Willa M.; Producer: Imani Camara, Lena Shareef; Writer: Willa M.; Photographer: TIKA; Graphic Design Lead: Hailey Honegger; Graphic Design: Alejandro Mendoza Mercado; Editor: Lena Shareef; PA: Melissa Zuazo

Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego