Rebecca was born in Illinois and moved to Tanzania, East Africa at age seven. She served in the Peace Corps in Ethiopia and China from 2008 until 2011.

In 2013 Rebecca moved to New York City and started experimenting with painting as a way to communicate her thoughts and observations around how the effects of time, distance, and movement impact a person's sense of self and how this can be presented on the canvas. She is drawn to non-objective oil painting as a way to communicate the emotions surrounding these themes. Her works are an investigation into sight and a meditation on light and movement. 

Rebecca has a BFA in Studio Arts- Painting from Illinois State University and studied painting at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC).

She currently lives in Palo Alto, CA and is offering private art lessons for children and adults. If you are interested in booking a lesson, please send an email to rebecca.hodel@gmail.com