Thomas George

Thomas George, an internationally celebrated artist, died on October 21, 2014 after suffering a stroke at his home in Princeton on June 9. He was 96.

Mr. George’s career in art spanned more than 70 years. He began painting professionally prior to serving in the Navy in World War II and continued painting almost daily until his final illness.

Intensely curious about the world, Mr. George travelled extensively. More than just visiting foreign countries, he settled down to live and work in France, Italy, North Africa, Japan, China, Wales, and especially Norway.

The Lofoten mountains in Norway held such fascination for him that he bought a house in Drobak, a small village on a fjord outside Oslo. During the 30 summers that he spent there, he drew and painted the Lofoten mountains in an infinite number of ways and in many different media. The images he created there remained in his subconscious and reemerged over the years in future work.

In the early 1970s, when the People’s Republic of China normalized diplomatic relations with the United States, Mr. George was one of the first artists invited to China. There he focused mainly on bold brush and ink drawings of the mountains of Kweilin. Gordon Washburn, writing in the catalogue of an exhibition of Mr. George’s work at the Smithsonian, observed: “Each drawing offers a rich abstract pattern, amounting to a kind of distillation of a Kweilin mountain scene. The more reduced they are in number of strokes, the more concentrated is the effect.”

By the time of his two extended trips to China, Mr. George was well into the work for which he became best known: abstract paintings and drawings inspired by nature. When an interviewer asked him about the roles that direct observation and memory played in his work, Mr. George answered: “Even though much of my work is basically abstract, I rely on nature for knowledge and inspiration. Looking at nature is where it all starts for me.”

To deepen his sense of color, Mr. George worked extensively in various British gardens, especially Bodnant Garden in Wales. The art he produced there, primarily pastels, led him to become a master colorist.

Reviewing a London show of Mr. George’s Bodnant Garden work, Dr. Gertrude Prescott Nutting wrote: “One of the remarkable aspects of Tom’s oeuvre is his continuing willingness to explore and experiment, both artistically and in terms of choice of environment, and to push continually beyond what he has done before. We encounter all the vibrancy of an artist still reaching youthfully for the next aesthetic discovery combined with all the depth of interpretation derived from 50 years devoted to that quest.”

Mr. George brought home to Princeton the skills he had developed abroad and drew and painted at the pond at the Institute for Advanced Study in all seasons and at all times of day. Many of these works are to be found in Princeton homes as well as in museums.

For 22 years, Mr. George was represented by the Betty Parsons Gallery at 15 East 57th Street in New York. Today, the woman and artist Betty Parsons and her gallery are the stuff of legend from the heyday of Abstract Expressionism from the late 1940s to the 1980s.

Mr. George’s works are in the collections of the world’s leading cultural institutions, including the Museum of Modern Art, the Whitney Museum of American Art, the Guggenheim Museum, the National Museum of American Art, the Tate Gallery, the Princeton University Art Museum, and many other institutions throughout the world.

Mr. George was a visiting artist or artist-in-residence at Dartmouth College, the University of Texas, the Art League of San Juan, and the Edward MacDowell Colony. He received awards or grants from the Rockefeller Foundation, the Ford Foundation, the Fulbright Scholar Program, the Brooklyn Museum, and the Salon International des Galeries Pilote in Lausanne, Switzerland, among several others.

Mr. George was born in New York City on July 1, 1918. His father was the world famous cartoonist Rube Goldberg. With a son entering the art field, Mr. Goldberg changed both his sons’ surnames to George so that they did not have to live in his shadow.

Mr. George attended Lincoln School, Deerfield Academy, and graduated from Dartmouth College in 1940. After a year at the Art Students’ League, he served in the Navy in World War II directing a group of artists who produced dioramas of the major assault landing beaches in Europe, Africa and the Far East.

Mr. George is survived by his sons, John George of Princeton and Geoff George of St. Paul, Minnesota; three grandchildren, Joshua George of Los Angeles and Maxwell and Olivia George of St. Paul; his niece Jennifer George of New York City; Jennifer’s children Max and Emily Cohn; and by his beloved partner, Mary A. Bundy of Princeton and Lexington, Massachusetts. Mr. George was predeceased by his first wife, Jean George of London, his second wife, LaVerne George of Princeton, and his brother, George W. George of New York City.

Mr. George’s ashes will be placed in the Princeton Cemetery beside those of LaVerne. A gathering of friends is planned for next spring near the pond at The Institute for Advanced Study, where Mr. George spent many hours over the years painting and drawing.

Contributions in Tom George’s memory may be made to the Thomas George Fund which is administered by the Princeton Area Community Foundation, 15 Princess Road, Lawrenceville, N.J. 08648.

Barbara Cody

Barbara “Bunny” Gorman Cody passed away peacefully in the presence of loved ones on Wednesday, October 22, 2014 at her residence in Kensington, Md.

Barbara was born in Princeton, the second daughter of John and Elizabeth Gorman. Barbara’s sister Patricia Ewers (nee Gorman) lives with her family in Spokane, Wash. During World War II, the Gorman family moved around the country, but after the war, they happily settled down back in Princeton. Barbara made her best friends there, in particular, her life long friend Jennifer Stace. Barbara attended Princeton High School, and these years were a time she remembered fondly. After graduation, Barbara felt the tug of wanderlust and traveled to California, where she spent a formative time in the San Francisco-San Jose area. Her love of the west never left her even after she returned to the East Coast.

Back in Princeton, working at (then) RCA, Barbara met and married George D. Cody. Living first in Hopewell and later settling on Southern Way in Princeton, Barbara and George had three children, George Jr., Lisa, and Monica. One thing that engaged Barbara significantly in the late 60’s and early 70’s was her love of folk music and she was very active in the Princeton Folk Music Society. One of her greatest memories was hosting Pete Seeger on his visit to Princeton, which was a hot bed of folk music at that time. While raising her children, Barbara worked towards and realized her dream of obtaining a Bachelors degree in English from Rutgers University. Barbara and George separated in the late 70’s, at which point Barbara moved from Princeton to Basking Ridge, N.J. It was during this time that Barbara re-entered the work force and worked her way up the corporate ladder using her English degree to advance in technical editing, eventually leading the technical editing team. Notwithstanding this success in the corporate arena, Barbara had a passion for giving and pursued and attained a Masters in Social Work from Rutgers. With her children successfully launched, Barbara left New Jersey and went back out west to apply her Social Work expertise to Casa de los Niños in Tucson, Ariz. While at first Barbara considered this a temporary position, she became enamored with the desert Southwest and settled down in Tucson permanently as a professional social worker working at the Tucson Medical Center. During this time she was highly engaged in music, playing with a local recorder group. Also during this time, Barbara reconnected with her dear high school friend Jennifer and designed and built a house in Baja, Mexico so that she could spend time with Jennifer. When it became difficult to live alone, Barbara moved back to the East Coast to be closer to her children. Barbara continued to help others until her last days.

She is lovingly remembered by her children George, Lisa and Monica; and her grandchildren, Christopher, Samantha, Katie, Maddie, Sean, Lily, and Quinn; and her sister Patricia. Barbara is also survived by her former husband, George Cody.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at St. Paul’s Catholic Church, 214 Nassau Street, Princeton, N.J. on Saturday, November 1, 2014 at 11 a.m. Burial will follow in Dayton Cemetery, Dayton, N.J.

In lieu of flowers, donations are being sent in her name to Casa de los Niños, 1101 4th Ave., Tucson, Ariz. 85705-7467. Phone: (520) 624-5600.

Extend condolences and remembrances at TheKimbleFuneralHome.com.

Giuseppe Mauro

Giuseppe Mauro passed away peacefully on Wednesday, October 22, 2014 at his home with his beloved wife by his side. Born in Acquaviva Platani, Sicily, he immigrated to the United States in 1955. While living in Sicily, Giuseppe was a member of The Carabinieri that performed military police and security duties for the Ministry of Defense, before and during World War II. He was employed with Princeton University, working in the maintenance division. He was a parishioner of St. Paul’s Church in Princeton and The National Association of Carabinieri’s in New York. He enjoyed gardening, music, and playing cards with friends and family, but his greatest joy in life was spending time with his grandchildren and family. He was a devoted husband, loving father, grandfather and great-grandfather, and will be missed by many.

The son of the late Carmelo and Josephine Mauro, he is predeceased by his brothers, Salvatore Mauro, Domenico Mauro, his sisters, Theresa Solazzo, Carmela Orlando.

He is survived by his beloved wife of 60 years, Rosa Mauro, his son and daughter-in-law, Carmelo and Lilian Mauro, his daughters and son-in-law, Josephine and Joe DiMatteo, Rose Anthony, his grandchildren, Joseph and David Mauro, Walter and Enzo Anthony, Angela and Daniela Mauro, his great-grandchildren, Anthony, Brayden, Solomon, Elias, and Isabella Mauro, Chase Ucisik, his brothers and sister, Nicolo Mauro, Calogero Mauro, Josephine Ingrao and several nieces and nephews.

A Mass of the Resurrection was celebrated on Tuesday, October 28, 2014 at 11 a.m. at St. Mary’s RC Church 45 Crosswicks Street in Bordentown. Calling hours were held on Monday evening from 6 to 8 p.m. and Tuesday morning from 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. at the Bordentown Home for Funerals, located at 40 Crosswicks Street in Bordentown. Burial followed at Bordentown Cemetery, Bordentown.

Arrangements are under the direct care and supervision of Robert L. Pecht, Bordentown Home for Funerals 40 Crosswicks Street, Bordentown, N.J. 08505.

Please go to Giuseppe Mauro’s Book of memories page at www.Bordentownhomeforfunerals.com to upload a picture, light a candle, order flowers, make a donation, or to offer condolences to the family.