Leah Schneider Traugott

1924 - 2018

Leah Schneider Traugott

Indianapolis - Leah S. Traugott (1924­ - 2018) passed away on January 15, 2018.

A well­known watercolorist and educator, Leah S. Traugott created works of art that captured the color and vibrancy of Indiana landscapes and gardens. Her works emphasized fine details, and a fine-tuned sense of color harmonies.

She exhibited in more than eighty one­person shows and numerous group exhibitions. Leah's work is in the collections of the Indianapolis Museum of Art, Indiana State Museum, Evansville Museum of Arts and Science, Wabash College, Franklin College, Kokomo Public Library, the Lilly Endowment, IPALCO Enterprises, Indiana Bell Telephone, the Hoosier Salon and many other private collections. In addition, Leah received awards from more than one hundred exhibitions, including the Indiana Artists Show at the Indianapolis Museum of Art; Kentucky Watercolor Society; Indiana Watercolor Society; and the Indiana Artists Club.

Her work was selected for national juried exhibitions, including "Century of American Watercolors" at the Indianapolis Museum of Art; "Mid­Year Show" at the Butler Institute of American Art, Youngstown, Ohio; "Watercolor USA" at the Springfield Museum of Art, Springfield, Missouri; "Rocky Mountain National Watermedia Exhibition", Golden, Colorado; "National Exhibition of the Pastel Society of America", in New York; Miniature Painters, Sculptors, and Gravers Society of Washington, DC; and "Nature Interpreted" at the Cincinnati Museum of Natural History.

Leah graduated from Shortridge High School in 1942 and Herron School of Art in 1946. She then worked as a commercial illustrator for large Indianapolis department stores, and she became known for her depictions of women's shoes. Later she taught drawing and painting classes at the Indianapolis Art Center for three decades.

Leah served on many boards including the Indianapolis Art Center, President of the Indiana Artist Club, the Executive Committee of the Washington Township Schools Planning Committee, and Secretary of the Women's Committee of the Indiana State Symphony Society. She was also a Girl Scout leader as well as actively involved in the PTA.

She became a fearless traveler who thrived on family road trips, including an adventuresome camping trek through the American Southwest in 1963; then a drive throughout Mexico, including San Miguel Allende in 1964; and to Oaxaca, Mexico, in 1966. Numerous conventional trips followed, including visits to France, Italy, Israel, Peru, Guatemala and the Yucatan.

Leah Traugott was the daughter of Joseph Henri Schneider and Rose Minkovsky. She was preceded in death by her husband of 68 years, Harry Traugott, and her sister, Nahoma Schneider Feibleman Decklebaum. She is survived by son Joseph Traugott and wife Laurel Wallace, daughter Dale Traugott, and granddaughters Carlin Traugott­Campbell and Lauren Traugott­Campbell. Her nieces include Joan Cassell Miller and husband Nathan Miller, Barbara Cassell Altman and her husband Henry Altman, Jean Feibleman Smith and husband Tyler Smith.

Funeral services will be held Thursday, January 18, 2018 at 10 AM in the chapel at Indianapolis Hebrew Congregation, 6501 N. Meridian Street. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Indianapolis Hebrew Congregation, Indianapolis Museum of Art or the Alzheimer's Association.

Arrangements entrusted to A.R.N. Funeral & Cremation Services.