Steve Hanks, whose paintings sensitively portray women and children, spent his childhood on the coast of California. His inspiration to paint developed in his late teens, after his family moved from Ventura County to New Mexico. In the 1960s, Hanks returned to the West Coast, enrolling at the University of California at Berkeley. Later, he attended the Academy of Art in San Francisco and graduated from the California College of Arts and Crafts in Oakland.

In June, 1998 he was featured artist at the prestigious Gilcrease Museum in Tulsa with a display of more than 40 originals. He was Artist of the Year at the 1999 Pacific Rim Art Exposition, leading the show's transition from wildlife to a more inclusive range of art.