For Marvin Hill

Sid, our young male cat, curls up on my lap as we sit on the sofa. He’s a sweet boy and his gentle nature is much appreciated. It is our friends, Marvin and Wendy Hill, who wished he would have such a temperament, as a way of healing the sadness left by a traumatic event within our own family. They are wonderful friends.

The Hills, as many Riverwesters may remember, are self-supporting artists. Marvin creates beautiful block prints that reflect his personal dreams and mythology, as well as his warm-hearted observations on simply living a loving and grateful life. Wendy adds the color—literally—and handles their business chores. They are a matched set of bookends.

Marvin holds the record for designing the most Riverwest ArtWalk t-shirts, and many ArtWalk visitors returned annually simply because he drew the designs. Marvin is an artist who pulls far-reaching ideas together and has the audacity to turn these ideas into images. The nerve! Imagine Lao Tse battling with Descartes…then there’s the image of their black cat, Weezie, curled up under the warm glow of a desk lamp. An early print portrays a man being chased by green beans. Everything gives Marvin ideas.

People all over the United States display Marvin’s art on their walls. Some of these people have never met the kind, funny, intelligent man who creates them, and yet, a connection is made because art traverses distance and time. At a recent fair, one print, She Climbs Through, touched many women who have “recovered” in some way, and, although his idea was to explain a universal experience of entering into a different space, like all good art, it extends beyond the artist’s vision.

During the last four years, sadly, Marvin has been living with something not-so-sweet, namely, Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma, a relatively slow growing, highly unpredictable form of cancer, driven by a lymph system gone haywire. He hadn’t changed a lick during 95% of this time until about May, when the sneakier aspect of this illness began to make some very aggressive moves. And so, the Hills have been experiencing the intimate details of the health care system: some helpful, some frightening, and some raising a question for every answer.

I am writing to the Riverwest community because Marvin and Wendy Hill are such familiar figures to many. I am writing this because I am hoping all the love in the world can stir up a miracle for them—that’s what they need now. You see, Marvin has, in a ridiculously short time, found himself in the hospital very, very often. A highly imperfect, totally human situation. Totally human, but for those of us who love him, quite hard to accept.

Several weeks ago, while lying on his back in the hospital, he looked up at his young doctor and explained that he wanted to go home so he could “get some things done in the studio.” A deck of Tarot cards had already been traced onto blocks and he knew how it would feel to carve them. Printmaking, and life, have a lot of routine, and Autumn is the season of cutting blocks and clearing out the garden.

Recently at their home, we fell into a typical Marvin-esque conversation which led him to state that he thought everyone should read or see three things: Read THE LITTLE RED HEN because it teaches about sharing; watch A WONDERFUL LIFE as many times as you can because it’s about the little things in life being so important; and watch HARVEY because it’s about paying attention.

These days, Marvin and Wendy are quite overwhelmed with grabbing onto every bit of studio and family time they can get, but the lymphoma is a selfish resident. If you want to send them a note, their email address is expressions@MarvinHill.com. You may not get an answer back, but I’m sure you will understand that they will appreciate the support.

–Glenda Puhek

[Editor's note: Marvin Hill passed away December 2, 2003]
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