Hudson moved to San Francisco, California for college in 1957. He received a B.F.A degree in 1961 and an M.F.A. degree in 1963, both from California School of Fine Arts (now San Francisco Art Institute or SFAI). Hudson was classmates with William T. Wiley. Hudson studied under Nathan Oliveira, Frank Lobdell, Elmer Bischoff, Jeremy Anderson, Gurdon Woods, and Frank Hamilton.
