Barbara Prignano
The life of Barbara Prignano came to an end peacefully on June 8, 2019. She was 93 and she died on her birthday. Her long life was filled with accomplishments. Most notably she was a professional artist in ceramics and oil painting, She was a fixture at the Art League juried shows, winning honors for her painting. Born in Chicago, Illinois, she lived much of her life in Marengo, Illinois. She was the oldest of four siblings. Originating from German and Norwegian stock, she was the most independent of her siblings. She attended the University of Illinois - Champaign Urbana where she majored in Fine Art. It's also where she met her husband John. They were married in 1950 and their marriage ended when he died in 2007.Her independent streak inspired her view about Gender Equality and Equal Pay. In 1971 she graduated from the Art Institute of Chicago with a Masters degree in Ceramics. One of the highlights of her time at the Art Instit-ue was being a participant in the Evanston Art Fair where she exhibited for the first time that I can tell, a piece that really changed how advertising was done. She used a plexi-glass box with a fan which blew air through three holes in the top of the box. As the fan blew air, there were three Mylar plastic tubes attached to the hole. When the fan was on they would undulate with the the wind and expansion from air gave them the appearance of wiggling fingers. If you ever pass by a car lot with the wiggling plastic tube you can thank my mother for inspiring that invention.Fresh out of the Art Institute of Chicago, my mother started up her first pottery business. It was called Earth Works and you could find her under the Lunt El tracks with her partner Sheri Carver. She was a neighborhood institution. Barbara was admired by her neighbors for her friendly smile and willingness to be of service. She loved going to Signature Theater, and Wooley Mammoth Theater to see cutting edge theater.. Seeing live theater was one of her passions. She was using her sense of color to always dress smartly.She was fair and pragmatic. She loved her siblings and their families. She is survived by her sister Suzi Lenhart, her son, Jay Prignano, her daughter, Victoria Prignano, Odir Valle her son-in-law and all the members of the Lenhart Family, The Tock Family, The Baird Family and the Larson Family. She will be greatly missed.4.Service scheduled for July 27.