Daniel "Dan" Spector

1951 - 2020

Daniel Spector
August 25, 1951- March 31, 2020
Dan Spector, a prominent Memphis sculptor, mold artist and director of historic restoration projects, died of COVID-19 on March 31, 2020. He had been admitted to Methodist Hospital two days earlier, after falling ill the week before. A devoted member of Beth Sholom Congregation, Spector came to Memphis in 1974 after graduating from the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD), to work as a designer at the Wonder Horse factory in Collierville, TN.

He was known as "an artist's artist," according to Attorney Bruce Newman, who produces a concert series, on which Spector served as a production assistant. Spector was loved and admired for his great work, quirkiness, dry humor, bluntness, kindness and candor. That element didn't always play well in a town where candor is a rare commodity, but Dan and Memphis grew to love one another. He owned Archicast Studios from 1986-2016 when he had to give up the studio in a horribly unfair situation. Other than his studio, the building was a condemnable wreck, so the landlord had to evict him in order to do structural repairs. He then set up Lifecast Studio, and continued to do restoration and contract work in semi-retirement, including restoring the moldings on the 19th Century Club and other historic buildings. A visit to his Broad Street studio revealed the amazing quality of his lifelike sculptures at Archicast; they are beautiful and erotic, with great attention to texture and detail. Dan's love and admiration for women is clearly exhibited in much of his work.

When he arrived in Memphis, Spector asked himself what a red headed Jew from Long Island was doing in a place like Memphis, but he adapted. He became a mentor and source of advice for other Memphis artists including potter Margie Culbertson, who was a loving partner for much of his life. She remembers: "We had a lot of fun together, and he kept me laughing with his acerbic wit, no matter how down either one of us were from time to time. He had an extensive knowledge of history and could talk at length about Memphis and the yellow fever epidemic, the Civil Rights Movement, the Blues, Cotton Carnival, Memphis in May and the evolution of the Beale street Music Festival for whom he volunteered through the years. He had a kind heart and strong ethical core."

Though his life was focused on the arts, Dan was a HUGE sports fan, and adapted to the Memphis sports culture as well as any "foreigner." Along with his love for the New England Patriots and NY Yankees (which reflected his counterintuitive nature), Dan became a huge fan of University of Memphis (State) football and basketball, the AAA Memphis Redbirds and the Memphis Grizzlies. His brother Jonathan remembers them going to the Mets opening day of their 1969 season during Pesach, with sandwiches Mom had prepared on egg-leavened rolls. Though they were underage, she also reminded them that beer is not Kosher for Pesach.

Beth Sholom member Michele Kiel Less remembers, "Dan reminds us of the importance of this wonderful place that we call home. He loved his Broad Street peeps and his Cooper-Young neighborhood. He loved the Memphis Tigers. Dan loved Memphis. His talents and the quirkiness for which he was so he was so recognized and so loved will be deeply missed."

Dan Spector was born in St. Louis on August 25, 1951, and grew up in Farmingdale, NY on Long Island. His father Abraham was an electrical engineer, and mother Dorothy was a librarian. He leaves a sister Rachel Spector Peak of Gilbert, AZ and brother, Jonathan in Israel. Financial gifts in Spector's memory should be directed to Beth Sholom Congregation in Memphis, the Memphis Food Bank, and the Arts Memphis Emergency Fund for local artists and musicians.