Leroy Johnson

It is with deep sadness that we are share the death of our friend and incredible artist Leroy Johnson. CFEVA had the pleasure of working with Leroy during his Fellowship, and, in a unique residency in our Bebe Benoliel gallery. We will miss Leroy's laugh, kindness, concern for this world and his unmatched artistic talent.  

Leroy passed away on July 8, 2022.

He was a CFEVA Visual Artist Fellow 2019-2021.

For more details about Leroy's long career and impactful life please visit: https://www.inquirer.com/obituaries/leroy-johnson-philadelphia-artist-obituary-20220714.html?outputType=amp

Pam Mammarella

CFEVA is saddened by the recent passing of past Board member, Pam Mammarella, who was so instrumental in beginning our long-time Senior Initiative Program partnership with NewCourtland Senior Services. This program seeks to offer seniors and local students high-level art art workshop experiences that bolster self-respect, a sense of well-being and connection with others and the community itself. We are grateful for her service and her inspiration to produce a program that has had lasting impact and, still in partnership with CFEVA, still serves seniors in NewCourtland centers today.

Pam passed away on June 22, 2022.

She served on the CFEVA Board from 2012-2014.

To view her obituary, please see: https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/name/palmina-mammarella-obituary?id=35382775.

Bettina Clowney

Philadelphia artist and spiritual director Bettina Clowney died peacefully at home on February 22, 2020. Her husband David and sons Peter and Matthew were with her when she passed; she also leaves behind a brother, Craig Scull, and two grandchildren. Bettina was cremated as she requested. Memorial services will be held on March 21, 2020 at 11:00 a.m. at the Church of the Holy Spirit, 2871 Barndt Road, Harleysville, PA. Bettina was born in Nuremberg, Germany in 1946, the daughter of Air Force colonel Stewart Scull and office manager Helen Balmer Scull. She fell in love with painting and art history as a child. She graduated from Temple University’s Tyler School of Art and went on to exhibit new work almost every year of her adult life. Bettina often said she painted because she had to. In mid-career, she spent 14 years studying iconography from a Russian master, and subsequently created traditional and modern icons for churches and collectors alike. Her work is in collections around the globe. A selection of her masterful and expressive paintings, including some of her icons, can be seen at www.bettinaclowney.com. Clowney’s paintings are alive with spiritual energy, strong, beautiful, accessible and profound, playful and startling, deeply rooted in tradition and traditional skills yet plainly contemporary, and uniquely hers. She exhibited the same qualities in her practice of spiritual direction, which she began with studies at the Shalem Institute. Bettina saw many dozens of directees over the past decades, always focusing on each person’s individual needs, and their own vital relation with the holy. As a wife, mother and friend, Bettina was loving, loyal, friendly, funny, full of humor and wisecracks. She was also particular about style and manners, shy, insecure, and, as she herself put it, “often wrong but never in doubt.” She both enriched and challenged those who loved her, and we would have had it no other way.

In lieu of flowers, contributions have been made to the Center for Emerging Visual Artists and we are very grateful.

Gabrielle Windeck Lee

Gabrielle passed away on January 18, 2021. She was a Board member at CFEVA Both family and caretakers were with her at the time. She was the widow of Robert S. Lee, Sr. of Philadelphia, who passed away in 1997. Gabriele initially lived in New York City and then moved to Philadelphia. She is survived by family in both the USA and Germany: in Germany, her brother, Friedrich Windeck and her sister-in-law, Hanne Windeck, her niece and nephew, Ursula and Frank Brunn. In the United States, she is survived by her five stepchildren, Robert Lee, Jr., Alison Teal, Dr. Steven Lee, Dr. Jordan Lee, and John Post Lee, nine step grandchildren, and two step great-grandchildren. Gabriele was an interior designer, working with both Knoll Associates and later with Vincent Kling Architects. She also taught interior design at Drexel University. She and her late husband, Robert S. Lee, Sr. were prominent art collectors and philanthropic supporters of arts and culture in Philadelphia, including CFEVA. Gabriele was on numerous other Boards such as the Associates Committee and the "Collab" design group at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Board of Directors of the Philadelphia Opera, the Board of Directors of the Philadelphia Academy of Fine Arts, and the Board of the German Historical Society. She loved her family, her group of long-term loyal and abiding friends, traveling, and the arts, including museums, music, and art, attending many art openings at local galleries. Gabriele was also known for her lively conversations and impeccable style.

CFEVA is honored to be the recipient of a legacy gift from Gabrielle’s estate.