Once an artist, always an artist - no matter how you go about it.
That seems to be the case for Brenda Hagedorn, 38, of Fremont.
Growing up in California, she worked in everything from pencil to pastels to satisfy that innate creative urge. So when multiple sclerosis finally forced her hand to put down the brush, Hagedorn just found another way to do what she loves.
She put the brush between her teeth and kept on painting.
Today, some of Hagedorn's work hangs in the home she shares with her 18-year-old daughter, Brandi. Everything from dramatic acrylics influenced by a childhood spent in the Southwest to whimsical portraits of favorite pets grace the walls of the living room.
A three-dimensional bouquet of flowers sits on an easel, ready to be painted, but Hagedorn may not get to this latest project right away. Her June calendar is pretty full.
As Artist of the Month at the Nebraska Loess Hill Resource, Conservation and Development Office in Oakland, Hagedorn, a 1982 Oakland-Craig High School graduate, was a special guest at the town's Swedish Festival this past weekend.
She'll appear this week in downtown Fremont during open house activities at Jack's Gallery, 408 N. Main St. Some of her work already is on display and for sale there and gallery owner and fellow artist Jack Schirmer has arranged a demonstration of her technique for 2 p.m. Tuesday.
Hagedorn isn't sure what her subject will be, but Brandi might be able to offer a few suggestions. She's assisted her mom since she was 9, cooking and doing housework.
She's also the one who puts the paints on the palette and hands over the brush. Then she has to leave the room.
"When she's painting," said Brandi, "I can't be here. I just want to help her."
But Hagedorn, who called the situation a mother-child role reversal, doesn't need any help once she gets under way. She paints in the same style as when she held the brush in her hand - only slower.
"I paint for five or 10 minutes at a time," she said, "then I rest a couple of hours."
Her first attempt - a portrait of a family pet named Smokie - is still her favorite. Even though Brandi could not discern at first what her mother was creating, Hagedorn saw the completed portrait in her own mind's eye. Still, when she finally finished, the artist said she was amazed she'd actually done it.
The demo at Jack's Gallery will be her first public "performance," but it won't be the first time Hagedorn has painted before onlookers. One of her home caregivers sometimes brings along her own young children and when Hagedorn gets ready to paint, the youngsters line up on the sofa and watch intently.
"I've been through the audience part," Hagedorn said.
Admirers can bid on some of Hagedorn's paintings during a special silent auction this week at the gallery. Although her themes vary, Hagedorn's trademark does not.
A yellow "H" appears on every work.
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