We recently connected with Margaret Schnebly Hodge and have shared our conversation below.
Margaret, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?
Two projects come to mind. (1) “Art In the Sunshine”; a 20-mile road project – During my 30-mile drive to and from work, I kept noticing hundreds of real estate and election signs. I really found the roadway signs irritating (many were illegal) and wondered “what would they think if I just put artwork all over the roads”? I knew I needed some partners, as I did not want to cause any negativity. The idea turned into reality with the help of 100 artists, 3 cities, the Museum of Arts and Sciences in Daytona Beach, and several rural property owners. I reached out over the internet and artists signed up from around the State of Florida. Some were being inspired to pick up a brush again after many years of not painting. They came to the museum two weekends to produce 300 art works out of repurposed plastic signs, which were installed along a 20-mile route in Volusia County, FL, for 3 months in 2007.
(2) Ponder the Artful Hare; a 24’long x 11’ high living sculpture. I was on one of the early Boards of the Ormond Beach Arts District in Florida. We were in the beginning stages of bringing art to the historic downtown. I happen to live in the area so decided to add a “landscape enhancement” to the backyard – that term kept it from being a piece of art, which might have caused some trouble in those early days. Ponder was created with a red sand/clay sculpture covered with 170 minima plants, and includes a head and feet made from metal lathe and hog nose rings. We estimate that he receives thousands of visitors each year.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
I don’t recall when I was not considered “an artist” by those around me. Drawing was a natural part of me and there are several known creatives in my ancestry. I was raised in Florida during the pop culture movement of the 1950’s and the counter-culture movement of the 1960’s. My mother worked in public outdoor recreation and my father worked in the emerging space industry. Those childhood experiences with my five siblings were full of complex and changing societal norms, outdoor physical activity in varying environmental conditions, and exploration of science and space, and these experiences remain influential in my work today. I received a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Florida but have enjoyed several master artist retreats over the years. My art has been shown in more than sixty juried and invitational exhibits, where I appreciate having received significant artistic awards and honors including a State of Florida Artist Enhancement Grant. My work is found in various corporate, public, and private collections Most recently, I was honored to receive 10 solo exhibitions throughout the state and my work continues to travel. For more information visit: MargaretHodgeArt.com
What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?
I suppose it is to paint what feels like life. Not representational of what we all see, but more to reveal what we all feel as sentient beings. My work is often seen as “dark”, but to me it is only in darkness that we can experience light. I have always looked to the internal and the eternal to find meaning in the physical world. My lines, marks, and colors are metaphors for ¬the underlying energy and elements of all things physical and perceived. Primarily a large-scale painter of figurative and atmospheric work, I often begin with an overall toned background. Instinctively using sgraffito, glazes, scumbling, and impasto, I veil and reveal, disrupt, flow, harmonize, and agitate media across the surface so that it pulsates with life. Sometimes manufactured materials add an external dimension to the implied space of my paintings. Often my figures are androgenous so that their critical message of the human condition is not impeded by a viewer’s bias. I truly believe that the inherited knowledge of my ancestors and all my personal experiences align to create each artistic stroke.
What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?
I believe the most rewarding aspect of my career is the many projects I have worked on that touched the public beyond what I will ever know. Working for County government, I got to help develop and manage several large programs that changed the community for the good – from the initial recycling programs to the Environmental, Cultural, Historic, and Outdoor Recreation (ECHO) program which grants funds for capital projects – both required use of my graphic art and marketing skills. My artistic perspective played a huge role in my career as it guided public education and designs for public use facilities. . Now, as President of a statewide not for profit art group, I use the management skills honed in my public service to the good of this organization. Once, someone told me I made a good “agent of change”, and another said “we like you in the room Margaret because you always bring a different perspective” – both comments still make me smile today.
Contact Info:
- Website: margarethodgeart.com
- Instagram: @mshodgeart
- Facebook: MargaretHodgetheArtist