Francie Rich & John Hodge Gallery Boutique
Once a year Francie Rich and John Hodge turn their home into a gallery boutique. Take one step into their home and its obvious that artists live there. John's pottery sits on shelves, tables, mantels and embellishes lamps. Francie's paintings line the walls in every room, and can be found on light switch plates throughout their home. My friendship with this husband-and-wife-artist-duo is as unique as the artists themselves. Each week I visit John's pottery studio where his students receive more than his skilled pottery instruction. He is a gifted storyteller and a talented self-taught cook. He shares recipe tips, travel advice, provides information on any topic and answers any questions that his students ask. All of this with Francie's favorite Bollywood music playing in the background. I am not only blessed to own some of Francie's artwork, but she has also been a tremendous creative influence, serving as an art teacher for both of my daughters.
John's pottery not only embellishes necklaces and earrings, but includes vases, serving dishes and holy-water fonts.
The couple vacations each summer in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico where they scour the city for unique finds for their annual gallery boutique.
John's collection of pottery displays are as beautiful as the pottery itself.
Francie's iconic style paintings showcase the subjects face on a gold leaf background. She often paints her students, but has been known to paint her pets, and anyone in the media spotlight.
This year whimsical paintings inspired by Clementine Hunter and George Rodrigue appeared on wooden bracelets. Francie calls this her Clementoye Rodriquez art. Also included in the sale were Francie's drawings that she creates on her cell phone. Each morning she uses her stylus to draw subjects that she finds in the newspaper obituary pages. You can also view these daily drawings on Tumblr.
