She often portrays her female subjects as miniaturized figures set within complexly arranged mechanical or military environments, usually engaged in erotic, violent, or sado-masochistic scenarios.
There she studied and practiced technical skills, and deep observation, with a diverse range of media, including, but not limited to, drawing, painting, and sculpture.
[5] Harkness draws on literature, history, and women’s studies to create detailed technical paintings that some critics say to be unmatched due to the intellectual historical information within each work.
Harkness created lesbian utopias that are populated exclusively with women depicted in traditional and stereotypically masculine roles.
The characters within the artworks are not giggling and gossiping rather they are often violent and overtly sexual creating a world where violence and sex are intertwined and have no consequences.
[8] In the mid-2000s, Harkness began to change and evolve her signature style with the goal to create medium-sized paintings with calmer compositions, and larger figures.