2003
MICHIGAN'S
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Painter exhibits her still lifes and her illustrations
for a new book at Huntington Woods gallery.
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111 arjorie Hecht Simon
tends two gardens —
one natural and the
other faux.
The natural garden enhances the out-
doors surrounding her Huntington
Woods home. The faux garden resides
inside as she paints stinks of flowers
and greenery observed around the world.
Simon, 82, a professional artist since
completing the School of the Art
Institute of Chicago in the 1940s, is
showing her most recent floral water-
colors in an exhibit at the Woods
Gallery in the Huntington Woods
Library. She also is showing illustra-
tions she completed for a children's
book celebrating the 100th anniver-
sary of Pewabic Pottery.
"Fired Magic and More," the library
exhibit running through Nov. 26, has
time set aside for a book signing begin-
ning 1 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 8. Simon
will appear with Marcy Heller Fisher,
author of Fired Magic: Detroit's Pewabic
Pottery Treasures (Wayne State University
Press; $21.95 cloth/$16.95 paper).
Fisher, who is doing a series of books
recognizing Detroit's artists and
artistry, took photographs of places —
from the Detroit Zoo to the People
Mover — enhanced with Pewabic tiles
and gave them to Simon to reproduce
in paint. The images help teach chil-
dren about the work of the center that
offers ceramic tiles, classes and exhibits.
"I've always loved flowers and have
done many paintings of flowers growing
in my garden," says Simon, who has
opened her yard for public tours. "I've
worked with watercolors since art school
in Chicago because I seemed to have a
facility with handling them. Before I did
still lifes, I did large landscapes."
Simon's career started in Baltimore,
where she was a fashion illustrator for
a large department store. After a year
of working for others, she decided to
open her own business in Chicago and
did freelance newspaper ads showcas-
ing children's and men's fashions.
"I won first prize in an artist compe-
tition, and that led to a lot of work,"
Simon recalls. "My experiences with
children were helpful in illustrating
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"Cambodian Dancers"• The artist has captured her world travels in her paintings.
the Pewabic Pottery book."
After marrying pediatrician Mannes
Hecht and starting a family,. Simon
stopped painting for a while, but she
returned to art after their three daugh-
ters were in school in Michigan.
Her projects, completed in a home
studio, found representation at the
Anna Werbe Gallery in Detroit and
the Allen Rubiner Gallery, first in
Royal Oak and later West Bloomfield.
During that timeframe, she also
accepted commissions and saw her
work in public buildings and private
homes. Michigan Blue Cross and
Blue Shield, the Automobile Club of
Michigan and Beaumont Hospital
have been her clients.
Of special importance were specific
hospital commissions in
Detroit — Children's
Hospital in the 1970s and
Receiving Hospital in
1996.
"For Children's Hospital,
I did murals for the admit-
ting area, emergency room,
kidney dialysis unit and an
outpatient building," recalls
Simon, who more recently
has shown her work at the
Posner Gallery in
Birmingham. "I planned
scenes that would keep
youngsters focused, and I
had jungle and circus
Above: "Flowers in
Chinese Vase"•
An example of the
artist's many
floral-themed water-
colors.
Left: Marjorie Hecht
Simon: "I've worked
with watercolors
since art school in
Chicago. ,3