CONSTANCE ARONSON

ARONSON--Constance, Constance Rose Aronson, loving wife to Herb, loving mother to Gigi and Peter, and loving grandmother to Seth, Alex, Mabel and Maisy, died peacefully at a Westchester County nursing home on April 16, 2020, at age 91. Connie lived a life well lived, married to Herb almost 60 years, raising her family in Edgemont, NY, then moving to New York City and Litchfield County, CT. She and Herb travelled widely and everyone who knew Connie knew her as a wonderful artist who often painted on location. "I paint to bathe in the joy of color," Connie's artist bio said, and this was so true, as Connie's bold work spoke to you through her palate of bright colors. But before her art, came Connie's love and devotion to her family. Connie epitomized the selfless mom, a mother who would do anything for her kids and grandkids. When Peter and Gigi needed something, this became Connie's priority, or actually, her mission, particularly if it had to do with food or shopping, making sure we had a good meal waiting for us if we worked late, making sure we had the right stuff in our homes to live the way she thought we should live. Connie was a selfless provider - emotionally, materially, and motherly. Herb was a loving, but strong willed husband. Connie stood by his side as he became a successful businessman in the menswear world. His success was their success, allowing them to enjoy a wonderful life together. Connie was born to Joseph and Lillian Wollman on April 2, 1929, in Philadelphia, where she was raised. Her art career began in her teens, painting water color interpretations of "Esquire" magazine photographs. Connie had formal art education at the Philadelphia School of Industrial Art and Design and, in later years, in New York at the Art Student League and the Isabel O'Neil Studio. Her early work was filled with impressionistic woodblock prints and abstract painting. Soon after, she fell in love with colorful flowers and this, along with her scenic travel paintings depicting French villages, the Mediterranean shore, the lake country in Italy, and the Scottish Highlands, to name a few, comprised decades of beautiful work. Connie travelled to Lockerbie, Scotland, to paint in memory of a friend's child lost in the devastating Pan Am 103 crash. In her later years, Connie spent countless hours in her Connecticut studio, painting florals that now decorate our homes. Connie branched out to painting furniture, leaving us with boxes, tables and the like that we enjoy every day and will be passed down for generations. Connie had solo and/or group shows in New York City; Como, Italy; and New England. Her paintings are in private collections throughout the U.S. and internationally. Connie and Herb married in August 1950. They spent almost 60 years together until Herb died in April 2010. We like to think they are now together again. You don't have to believe in the afterlife to think that thought, you just have to believe - because you want to believe - that happy lives, lives well lived - have happy endings. In addition to being survived by daughter Gigi Kotler, son Peter Aronson and grandchildren Seth Guiterman, Alex (Guiterman) Wynne, and Mabel and Maisy Aronson, Connie also is survived by Gigi's husband, Chuck Kotler; Peter's wife, Emily Russo; Seth Guiterman's wife, Carly Guiterman, and their daughter, Elle Guiterman, Connie's first great-grandchild; and Alex's husband, Jason Wynne. Anyone wishing to make a donation in Connie's memory should please make it to a charity of their choice to help those in need due to the pandemic.