Carol Hagan is self-taught as an artist. She did not have formal art training, with the exception of taking two workshops with the late Joe Abbrescia, whom she considers to be one of her mentors. She has worked hard to develop her own style of expressing herself on paper and canvas. She has been referred to as a Contemporary Expressionist, and a Colorist. Her paintings are a contemporary expression of her subject matter, both through her choices of vibrant color, and even the use of very little color, yet more gestural lines, and the textures and marks that she makes. She draws inspiration from the views, skies, colors and landscapes of the West. Her passion for horses, and love for the animals and wildlife that make Montana their home are what compels her to paint.

Spending much of her life in Montana has allowed Carol to nurture a deep love of the American West. She is constantly in awe of its raw, spectacular beauty and grand vistas, rolling grassy hills and stunning mountains, and the animals that inhabit this incredible place. She has loved horses for as far back as she can remember. She particularly enjoys trying to capture the fluidity of their graceful, forceful forms and movements in her paintings, through brushstrokes, marks, texture, and color.