Lydia Herrick Hodge

LYDIA HERRICK HODGE (Oregon, U.S.A., 1886-1960)
"Portrait of a Spanish woman", 1930.
Patinated bronze and Belgian black marble pedestal.
Signed, dated and located.
Measurements: 36 x 19 x 24 cm; 47.5 cm (total height with pedestal).
This bust reflects the interest of many American artists of the time in Mediterranean cultures and Spanish popular types, considered to have a strong aesthetic and cultural identity. In this bust, Hodge emphasizes the serenity and introspection of the figure through the narrowed eyes, the freely modeled surfaces and a stylized elongation of the neck that brings elegance and verticality to the composition.
The piece combines realism and formal simplification, characteristics of the modern sculpture of the interwar period. The expressive treatment of textures and the presence of the traditional pendant suggest a search for cultural authenticity, while the loose, vibrant modeling reveals the artist's hand and her interest in conveying emotion rather than strictly academic portraiture.
Lydia Herrick Hodge was a leading promoter of art and ceramics in Oregon. She was born August 7, 1886 in Valparaiso and moved to Oregon in 1922, when her husband, renowned geologist Edwin T. Hodge, accepted a position at the University of Oregon. In 1927 she earned a degree in art from the same university.
Committed to the development of the arts in the region, Hodge brought together alumni of the University of Oregon in 1935 to found an Art League. Two years later she pushed for the creation of the Oregon Ceramic Studio, which opened in 1937 with funding from the Works Progress Administration. Managed by volunteers, the studio offered exhibition space, art sales and educational programs. It achieved national recognition as one of the nation's leading craft centers and boasted the largest pottery kiln on the West Coast of the United States.
In 1938, the Oregon Ceramic Studio established permanent headquarters in the H. Abbott Lawrence-designed building in Portland. The institution evolved over time: in 1965 it was renamed the Contemporary Crafts Gallery, in 2002 the Contemporary Crafts Museum & Gallery, and finally, in 2007, the Museum of Contemporary Craft. That same year it moved to Portland's Pearl District and, in 2016, was integrated into the Center for Contemporary Arts and Culture at Pacific Northwest College of Art.
Lydia Herrick Hodge passed away on September 17, 1960 in Portland. Her legacy lives on in the art institutions she helped found and in the impetus she gave to the development of ceramics and applied arts in Oregon.