Holly Lewis

I remember one Christmas morning as a teenager in the late 70s in Tulsa, OK, my sister and I were opening gifts from my our mother. As the wrapping paper fell to the floor, we both unearthed a gold-rimmed, framed art piece that we had constructed when we were kids at Campus school back in the 60s. Our mother had kept these pieces and decided it was time to surprise us with them. Needless to say, I was beyond thrilled that my mother had the wherewithal to keep this precious art that we made as young children. My mother was head of the theatre department at the University of Tulsa, but we lived in Oshkosh for four years when she was finishing her doctorate and teaching alongside Mr. Hodge at UWO. Most certainly, my mother being an educator, thought very highly of Mr. Hodge and the work he did with the children.

(below) Edward Van Halen, stylus pen drawing on photograph in Android phone

As I sit here in my 60's today, I can still remember being in his classroom at the long tables working with different mediums all the while him guiding us and letting our imaginations run wild. Mr. Hodge had such a unique way of allowing us to express ourselves while he showed us different techniques to do just that. Whether it was coloring the rainbow wildly on a piece of construction paper with crayons, covering it with black paint and scraping it off to make a picture, carving in linoleum with tools, rolling paint over the square slab then pressing it onto clear or solid paper to create a reduction print, or pouring Plaster of Paris into a mold to create a 3D art piece, there was never a lack of opening our little minds to giant possibilities by Mr. Hodge. I have never forgotten those days.

(left three images) Kinesiology class, massage therapy school, pencil tracing, early 2000’s

(right) Mermaid Manifest, pencils, markers and crayons, 2000’s

When Facebook appeared on my computer screen, the first person I searched for was Cathy Hodge, his daughter. I never thought I would hear from these beautiful people again who left such an impression on me as a young 1-4 grader. Much to my delight, I found them and we reconnected!! I have been able to speak with Mr. Hodge on the phone several times over the years and he is still such a joy!

(below) Lute (classmate on bicycle), Tempura Batik, 1960’s in Mr. Hodge’s class

I continued my studies throughout the decades to become a musician, a computer programmer, a massage therapist, and a medical transcriptionist. As each new chapter unfolded, I used Mr. Hodge's teachings to assist me in navigating my way through schooling, just having fun or even in some dark times when they came. Mr. Hodge left such an impression on me and I am so grateful and lucky to have been one of his students. The love and appreciation I feel for him cannot be expressed in words, but I will try and show you with some drawings I've done throughout my life and the effect that he left ingrained inside me. From elementary school, to massage therapy school, to "Picture Prayers" for friends when we were manifesting good things, to "Pooch and Paint" in Nashville (wine and acrylics with friends), acrylic of my friend's dog's tag when "Boo Boo" passed for grieving, for coping with the passing of Eddie Van Halen during the pandemic, to just the other night drawing a flower on my phone because I needed a little spiritual lift. These are the many ways that Mr. Hodge has continued to influence my life and most likely will until...

All I can say is thank you so much Mr. Hodge! I love you dearly. Congratulations on a life's work well done! Bravo!

❤ 🎨 ❤

You may also like