Elsie Haddon Haynes was born on the Isle of Wight in England. Her father, a historian, was a professor at Cambridge. Elsie was raised in Wimbledon, England, and received formal training in art at the Herkomer Art School in Hertfordshire, England, during 1905 and 1906. She later studied in Belgium, Brussels and Bruges followed by study in Paris between 1908 and 1909. She settled in Cambridge in 1911 where she worked as an artist.

During World War I, Elsie went to France where she served in a YMCA "hut" that gave food as well as provided recreation to soldiers. It was during her service to the YMCA that she met an American, who was also on the staff at the Hut named William Haynes. The couple married in 1919 in L'Havre, France.

The newlyweds relocated to the United States, settling first in Nebraska and then permanently in Denver, Colorado. Haynes' specialty became landscapes. Though she painted in Europe, California, Arizona, and South Dakota, the Colorado Rockies were her favorite subject. One of her paintings of South Boulder Canyon was purchased as a gift to President Eisenhower.

Haynes was active in the art community in Denver and became a charter member of the Denver Artists' Guild which was founded in 1928. She continued to reside in Denver until her death in 1963.

Exhibited: Royal Academy, London, 1910; Brook Street Art Gallery, London, 1910 (solo); Conrad Hug Galleries, Denver, 1924 (solo); Cyrus Boutwell Galleries, Denver, 1927 (solo); Kendrick-bellamy Company Art Gallery, Denver, 1929 (solo); Chappell House, Denver (forerunner to the Denver Art Museum), 1936 (solo); Midwestern Artist Annuals, Kansas City, MO; Pasadena Art Institute, CA; Denver Artists Club; Broadmoor Academy, Colorado Springs, CO; Denver Art Museum; Denver Museum of Natural History (renamed Denver Museum of Nature and Science), 1963 (memorial).

Works held: International House, Denver; East Denver High School; Denver Public Library; Denver Museum of Nature and Science.

Further Reading: Artists of the American West: A Biographical Dictionary, Vol. 2, Doris Ostrander Dawdy, Swallow Press, Chicago, 1980. 3 Vols.; Encyclopedia of Women Artists of the American West, Phil Kovinick and Marian Yoshiki-Kovinick with a foreword by William H. Goetzmann, University of Texas Press, Austin: 1998.; Who Was Who in American Art 1564-1975: 400 Years of Artists in America, Vol. 2. Peter Hastings Falk, Georgia Kuchen and Veronica Roessler, eds., Sound View Press, Madison, Connecticut, 1999. 3 Vols.

© David Cook Galleries, LLC