[3] His parents, Johann Hafen and Anna Elizabeth Ruesi,[2] were converts to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

[4] He was able to display some of his paintings of landscapes at Savage's studio, which were described as "not only credible, but decidedly praiseworthy" by a writer for the Salt Lake Herald-Republican.

[2] With the help of George Q. Cannon,[6] Hafen successfully convinced the LDS Church leadership to sponsor his art studies abroad.

[2] On June 4, 1890,[15] alongside John Fairbanks, Lorus Pratt, and Edwin Evans, Hafen was called as a full-time missionary and assigned to Paris, France.

The only fine imposed on our trip so far was Loris; one day he was so busy teaching the gospel to fellow passengers that he forgot to make a sketch.

"[2]: 12 After arriving in Paris on July 24, 1890,[17] Hafen and Fairbanks began study at the Académie Julian, where their primary instructor was Albert Rigolot.

[15] In the fall and winter, the artists would study indoors at the Académie, then spend the warmer months outdoors in the country under the direction of professionals.

Hafen struggled to meet the expectations of his mentors, particularly in drawing, and made an effort to replace what he had taught himself in Utah with these new European artistic methods.

He struggled to have confidence in his abilities and grew worried over the artists' financial situation, but was encouraged by a letter from George Cannon to complete his mission.

At the conclusion of his year abroad, Hafen traveled to the countryside before leaving Europe to sketch and paint nature scenes.

[16][4] He fined-tuned his abilities by learning from landscape artist Arthur F. Mitchell and "returned home ... a confirmed landscapist in the tonalist tradition of the French Barbizon School.

"[7] George Q. Cannon offered the art missionaries the opportunity to stay longer than the originally agreed-upon duration of a year to continue at the Académie; Hafen, however, decided to stick to the plan and come home.

[19] Hafen began work on the walls of the garden room[16] in 1892, and soon wrote to the other art missionaries, petitioning their return and assistance in painting the murals.

[20] Hafen continued to paint following his return home, and opened up a studio of his own in Springville, where he exhibited his depictions[21] of the rural Utah landscape from the mid-1890s until 1907.

[2] Over the years, Hafen painted an estimated 200 works for the church,[24] including Girl Among the Hollyhocks, which has been commended as "a masterpiece of American Impressionism".

[2] In 1903, after attending an art lecture at Brigham Young Academy, Hafen decided to donate his painting entitled Mountain Stream to Springville High School in an effort to inspire a new generation of artists in that community.

[27]: 62  Hafen was offended by the LDS Church's reluctance to endorse the booklet of poems and use them as material for missionary distribution, thinking that they disliked his paintings.

He left to visit his family in Utah for a time, then returned to Indiana with his son Virgil, an aspiring artist; together they opened up a studio in Indianapolis.

[2] Hafen struggled to balance his artistic endeavors with the responsibility to provide for his family financially; he entered into multiple ventures to try to make money, but none of them were fruitful.

"[2]: 1  During his trip to Europe, Hafen spent a few weeks in his home country of Switzerland, continuing to improve his artistic abilities and attempting, unsuccessfully, to trace his family roots.

[24] The financial strain he experienced prior to his time in France continued when he returned to Utah, and Hafen combined his artistic endeavors and commissions from the LDS Church with other employment, as he had done before.

[1] As one writer describes, "extreme poverty was Hafen's almost constant companion in life, and he combatted the condition as best he could with the weapons of a romantic.

"[7]: 11  Although too poor to pay his rent, by trading a painting for the right to use some land and bartering with locals for help with the construction, Hafen was able to acquire a home in Springville; a Swiss-style chalet, designed by his friend Alberto Treganza.

[21] His body was brought back to Utah and buried in a Springville cemetery "where he had, years before, painted a picture looking across his beloved valley [into] the tops of the mountains.

Speakers included George H. Brimhall and B. H. Roberts; the latter recalled that Hafen saw art as his life's mission and "was willing to sacrifice all" for his creative pursuits.

[16]: 104  Despite his inability to achieve mainstream success, art critic Alice Merrill Horne called Hafen the premier painter of his day.

[35] His paintings have been on display in Paris, Boston, Chicago, Philadelphia, and St. Louis at exhibitions such as that of the Society of American Artists; the John Herron Art Institute has also featured his works.