Anna Haskel, also known as Anna Hackel, was born in August 1864 in Volfartice (Wolfersdorf) near Ceská Lípa. She came from a modest rural setting and made a living making butter. However, her urge to create art grew, and at fifty she felt her hand lead a higher power. The result of this power was the production of curious and often symmetrical floral patterns made with colored crayons. A significant number of her surviving works date from the early 1930s. During this time she participated in group exhibitions in Switzerland and France and began to gain international recognition. Anne Hackel's works can be found in the following collections: La Collection Saint-Anne in Paris, Museum of Everything in London and CoMA in Germany.