Louis Pohl

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Louis Pohl (1915 - 1999) In the rich and vibrant tapestry of Hawaii artists is woven the life and works of a special painter, Louis Pohl. Considered by many an artist's artist, Louis Pohl through his craft reflected brilliance and through his heart nurtured the potential waiting to be tapped in others. Painter, illustrator, art teacher, mentor, printmaker, and cartoonist were all venues in which Louis Pohl had achieved outstanding recognition the significance of which resulted in his being designated a “Living Treasure of Hawaii ” by the 1994 Hawaii State Legislature. Born in 1915, in Cincinnati, Louis was the oldest of 6 children. A childhood bout with rheumatic fever made it impossible to walk without excruciating pain and prevented Louis from entering school until he was 8 years old. To keep Louis busy while his brothers were in school, his parents would give him papers and pencils with which to draw. He was always drawing - that is what he knew best. Good fortune smiled on young Louis and set his life on a path that would ultimately bring him to Hawaii to live and work. An act of generosity would change Louis' life forever and continue to open opportunities for him throughout his life. Louis was 14 when the Great Depression in progress and he worked as a caddy during the summer at the local golf course. A regular foursome of well-to-do women had a very special bet. The loser would make their caddy's wish come true. Louis waited patiently for his turn. The loser on that day was Mrs.Yaeger. Louis dared to say to her what he had rehearsed in his mind for two years, “I want to go to art school. ” Mrs. Yaeger invited Louis to her house to discuss the matter, but he was too shy so he sent his father over to the house with his drawings. Without hesitation, she told Mr. Pohl to have Louis report to the Cincinnati Art Museum the next day explaining she would pay the tuition for one year. However, this presented a problem as there was hardly enough money for the large family during the Depression, let alone the extras for Louis to go to art school across town. To earn tokens for the streetcar ride to school, Louis did chores for his uncle Ott everyday. His best friend, Bob Fabe, begged his mother to make big lunches to share with Louis. Louis and Bob pulled pranks on each other and challenged each other to do more and better work. The first year of his formal art education was devoted only to drawing, as is the tradition in a professional art school of his time. Paper and drawing pencils were readily available and Louis was a dedicated and prolific student. At the end of the school year he went back to the golf course and had the excellent fortune to see Mrs. Yaeger. She casually asked Louis how he was doing. He replied that he had so much more to learn. She paid his tuition for another year of art school. The second year's focus, painting, caused financial problems because oils, brushes and canvas were so expensive. To resolve this, Louis stayed after the other students had left and, before the school closed for the night, collected the oil paints from the rims of the rubbish cans that other students had scraped off their palettes.

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