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Madeline Hogan Combines Art Thesis with Passion for Motocross

February 7, 2018

On Feb. 10, 2018, the Monster Energy and Toyota AMA Supercross event will feature a segment on University of Montana Western student Madeline Hogan.

Madeline Hogan

Monster Energy/Toyota filmed 16 women involved in motocross around the country. Throughout the 17-race Supercross series, these short documentaries will air on television and live in the arenas. The company hopes they will inspire young girls to participate in the sport.

“The sport has been dominated by men, but it’s finally getting to the point where women are taken seriously. I got selected because I am an artist and single mom that races,” Hogan said.

Growing up in Butte inspired Hogan to get on a bike; the urge to ride is strong in a city whose patron saint is the most famous daredevil of all time.

“Since I was a child, I grew up around bikes. Evel Knievel inspired a lot of people to ride. I started racing when I was sixteen. I took two state championships. Two summers ago was when I got back into it. I took a five year break from it when I had my daughter,” she said.

Monster Energy/Toyota filmed Hogan riding around a track in Bozeman and interviewed her at the studio she paints out of in Dillon, Mont.

“They filmed my thesis artwork. My thesis is called “Bohemian Girls.” It focuses on strong-willed women that are empowered by living on the edge with extreme sports, skiing, dirt-biking, mountain biking. It’s mixed medium with paint and masonite board.”

Hogan is a double Visual Arts and Business Administration major. The knowledge she has gained from these two disciplines allowed her to create her own business, Bohobone, where she sells painted skulls.

It is a brilliant way to combine her many interests. The skulls are a free resource widely available in Montana, and she uses her skills as a rider to search for them.

“I found some skulls last summer up in Blacktail. I have this graveyard outside of my house. The worst part is cleaning them,” she said while laughing. “I came up with the idea for using skulls because they’re native to Montana. It’s a lot cheaper than painting on canvas.”

Being consigned with a gallery in Bozeman, selling skulls online, and doing custom work allows Hogan to provide for her six-year-old with the added bonus of being able to express herself creatively.

To learn more about Madeline and her art, you can watch the race where her segment will be aired on Fox Sports 1 on Saturday, Feb. 10, at 8 p.m. MST.

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