Olga Hoebel: 1906-1997

Hicksville's Resident Artist

By Michael Larkin

Olga Hoebel, Hicksville's "resident artist," died last month at the age of 91, and with her passing so too passes a piece of, and possibly a link to, Hicksville's past.

Artist and Museum Trustee, Olga Hoebel, and Gardiner Gregory, founder of the Hicksville Gregory Museum, at the grand opening of the Gregory Museum in the historic Heitz Place Courthouse and unveiling of a portrait of Gardiner.

As the Hicksville community approaches its 350th Anniversary, and it is in the process of attempting to recapture a "sense of place" in the downtown area, her death strikes an ironic tone. Her life had a profound effect on what Hicksville was, what it is today, and what it will be in the future.

"She was always interested in keeping alive the history of Hicksville," said Val Conover, who served as a trustee of the Gregory Museum with Hoebel and is now editor of the museum's Newsletter, View From the Cupola.

Her involvement in securing the history of Hicksville is evidenced in her work at the Gregory Museum where she served as trustee for many years. Her efforts were a driving force in the renovation and conversion of the Heitz Place Courthouse into the museum that now stands as the Hicksville Gregory Museum. Her persistence, as well as that of other trustees, was also vital to the inclusion of Hicksville's history to that of the rock and mineral exhibitions that the museum had been known for.

"We knew it [museum] wouldn't last if it didn't have anything about Hicksville included," said Conover.

In such works as her oil painting, "My Backyard at Hicksville in the Fall" and her sketches "Hicksville Railroad Station," "Old Trinity Lutheran," and "Heitz Place Courthouse, Hicksville" Hoebel was able to capture something beautiful in a place where art was seldom looked for.

"Many people thought suburbia had nothing to offer in the ways of art and culture," said Richard Evers, Hicksville historian. "People like Olga, however, tried to foster the cultural events that were going on around her in her art and through her teaching."

In 1949 she introduced art courses in the Hicksville Adult Education Program. These classes soon evolved into the "Palette Club," a group that met regularly at her home studio to receive instruction and input on their work. Later the name was changed to the Independent Art Society of Long Island, where Olga served as president. She also established and served as president of the Long Island Chapter of the National League of American Penwomen.

"She brought a cultural outlet of expression to many people who otherwise would not have had an interest in art through her teaching with the Hicksville schools and her private lessons," said Evers.

Hoebel emigrated to the United States from Germany in 1923 and soon after married Louis Hoebel, the son of a Long Island farmer. Her studies in art at a European girls school, under the direction of artist Von de Voorde, began the fine tuning of her extraordinary skills at a young age. Throughout her career Hoebel received instruction in technique and form from such teachers as Bessie Williams, Joseph Anthony Ryan, Chester Hagen, Ike Nordgren, and Whit Brown.

Many of her early works were influenced by her summer visits to the Adirondacks with her husband. These works received critical acclaim at various exhibitions in the New York area. Her oil paintings, water colors, and sketches of Long Island scenes were finally collected and displayed in Vistas of Paumanok in the late 1980s at the Hicksville Gregory Museum. These images were taken from works forged from post-World War II Hicksville and other mid-Nassau communities. Another one of her works hangs in the chapel at St. Ignatius Loyola R.C. Church in downtown Hicksville. It was a painting of the Crucifix done in memory of her deceased husband.

In her later years Hoebel dedicated her time to her miniature sketches and private lessons, which she conducted until her late 70's. She battled the ill effects of Alzheimer's disease for many years. Her funeral arrangements were made by her longstanding friend, Joseph Catalano, and the Stocks Funeral Home. She was laid to rest in the Hoebel family plot at the Hicksville Plainlawn Cemetery.

"She would have been very happy with all the attention that is being paid to enrich and beautify the downtown area," said Evers, who was also a personal friend of Hoebel. "These are all things that she would have been very interested in."