This week’s “In Memoriam” pays tribute to notable figures in the art world who have recently passed away, celebrating their contributions and legacies.<\/p>\n
Pearl Fryar (1939\u20132026), known as the “Picasso of Plants,” was a self-taught topiary artist who transformed a South Carolina cornfield into a renowned garden. After hours spent working a full-time manufacturing job, Fryar dedicated his evenings to rescuing plants and creating intricate topiary sculptures, promoting themes of love, peace, and goodwill. His garden remains open to the public, maintained through donations and volunteer efforts.<\/p>\n
Celeste Dupuy-Spencer (1979\u20132026) was a painter whose works and advocacy efforts confronted violent political events such as the January 6 insurrection. Her pieces were featured in prestigious exhibitions, including the Whitney Biennial and the Hammer Museum’s “Made in LA.”<\/p>\n
Andrey Akuzin (1973\u20132026), a pivotal figure in Russian art, tragically died by suicide in detention. He was known for his support of the left-wing nationalist opposition group “Artpodgotovka,” which was banned in Russia.<\/p>\n
Siri Aurdal (1937\u20132026) was a Norwegian artist recognized for her use of industrial materials to create socially engaging sculptures. A fixture of the 1960s Scandinavian art scene, Aurdal participated in the 2017 Venice Biennale’s Nordic Pavilion.<\/p>\n
Hilde Limondjian (1936\u20132026) directed concerts and lectures at the Metropolitan Museum of Art for over four decades, organizing more than 9,000 events and nurturing talents like Philip Glass and Patti Smith.<\/p>\n
Hal Marcus (1951\u20132026) was an artist, gallerist, and book illustrator known for his pop and surrealist depictions of border life between El Paso and Ju\u00e1rez. He operated the Hal Marcus Gallery for 30 years, supporting local artists.<\/p>\n
Frank Stack (1937\u20132026), under the pseudonym Foolbert Sturgeon, created satirical comics addressing religion and philosophy, pioneering the underground comic movement with works like “The Adventures of Jesus.” He taught at the University of Missouri for nearly four decades.<\/p>\n
Rosemary Tracy Woods (d. 2026) founded Springfield, Massachusetts’ Art for the Soul Gallery, promoting art and social justice by supporting marginalized artists, including Black, Indigenous, and disabled creatives.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
This week’s “In Memoriam” pays tribute to notable figures in the art world who have recently passed away, celebrating their contributions and legacies. Pearl Fryar (1939\u20132026), known as the “Picasso of Plants,” was a self-taught topiary artist who transformed a South Carolina cornfield into a renowned garden. After hours spent working a full-time manufacturing job, Fryar dedicated his evenings to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":555881,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"Default","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-555880","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/winklersart.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/555880","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/winklersart.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/winklersart.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/winklersart.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/winklersart.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=555880"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/winklersart.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/555880\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/winklersart.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/555881"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/winklersart.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=555880"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/winklersart.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=555880"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/winklersart.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=555880"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}