Bobbie Louise Hawkins

1930 - 2018

Beloved Teacher, Renowned Author and Artist

Bobbie Louise Hawkins, esteemed writer, visual artist and educator, died at her home in Boulder on Friday. Her daughter, Sarah, was with her. She was 87 years old.

Bobbie Louise Hawkins was born July 11, 1930 in Abilene, Texas, to Nora Hall, who raised her with her husband, (Hawkin's stepfather), Harold ""Dutch"" Hall.

Bobbie Louise Hawkins, whose life was a flawless performance of poise and articulation, was forever adamant about the way she wanted to engage in the field of arts and letters.

In an interview with fellow writer Barbara Henning, Bobbie, as always, put it best: ""I hate that phrase, 'My wife at the time,' which some men use… willing to let a woman be a 'muse'. Being a muse means you sit someplace and watch this other person have all the fun.""

Hawkins was among a wave of American artists, born before the Second World War, who left a bold and lasting imprint, particularly during the second half of the twentieth century. When her novel ""Back to Texas"" appeared in 1977, playwright Sam Shepard, wrote to her, enthusiastically acknowledging a new and genuine voice in American letters.

Hawkins published many books of fiction, poetry, and stories about her life. Her writing shows a strong sense of humor and an ability to make challenging situations seem funny.

Independent and self-motivated, Hawkins married young and left, not only Texas, but the United States, after being accepted as a visual artist at The Slade School of Fine Art in London. She and her husband, Danish born Olaf Hoeck, had two daughters; Kirsten Ann Hoeck, whose son is Trane Devore, and Leslie Karen Hoeck.

Hawkins also had two daughters from her second marriage to poet Robert Creeley; Sarah Hall Creeley, whose daughter is Miranda Rose Konoplisky, and Katherine White Creeley.

After extensive international residence (Japan, Belize, Guatemala), Bobbie Louise Hawkins lived near Albuquerque during the late 1950s and 1960s. In 1969, she moved to Bolinas, California.

Hawkins came to Boulder in 1978 at the urging of poets Allen Ginsberg and Anne Waldman, to design and implement a concentration in fiction at Naropa University (then called the Naropa Institute). She taught at Naropa until her retirement in 2010. Throughout her decades of teaching writing at Naropa, Hawkins was a beloved role model who changed the lives of her countless students. She was also adored by her friends at Brookdale North Independent Living.

Hours after her death, former student and now London editor Andrew Wille posted: ""I remember Bobbie as one of the great teachers, and one of the great storytellers and one of the great prose stylists.""

As a visual artist, Hawkins was given the first one-woman show of paintings and collages at New York's Gotham Book Mart in 1974. In 1979 she was one of one hundred poets from eleven countries invited to the ""One World Poetry Festival"" in Amsterdam. ""Talk"" a one-hour play, was produced on PBS in 1980.

In the early 1980s, Hawkins toured from New York City's Bottom Line to San Francisco's Great American Music Hall, as well as internationally, with ""Three Women"", fusing her stories and monologues with highly accomplished singer-musicians Rosalie Sorrels and Terry Garthwaite, formerly of "Joy of Cooking".

In 2002, her performance piece, ""Life as We Know It"" premiered at The Boulder Museum of Contemporary Art and moved on to Joe's Pub, the celebrated cabaret within New York's Public Theater.

A recipient of a Fellowship in Literature from the National Endowment of the Arts, Hawkin's other selected prose and poetry include: ""Own Your Body"" (1973); ""Frenchy and Cuban Pete"" (1977); ""Almost Everything"" (1982); ""One Small Saga"" (1984); ""My Own Alphabet"" (1989) ""The Sanguine Breast of Margaret"" (1992 ); and ""Absolutely Eden"" (2008).

Bobbie Louise Hawkins was an inspiration to all who knew her for her ability to speak her mind honestly, her passion and creativity, and her compassionate and generous nature. She will be greatly missed!