Margaret Hart

Dec. 21, 1921 – May 18, 2020

Margaret M. Hart's landscapes, studies and portraits in watercolor, pastel, oil and charcoal are proudly displayed on many hundreds of walls across the world.

Her prolific expression of her talent is doubly impressive for a woman who had six children over 21 years.

"As a mother with a career in art, she found it amusing that her children thought every mother painted in their spare time," said her oldest son, Eugene P. "Gene" Hart Jr. "She was a very typical 1950s mom who became a 21st century grandma and liberated woman."

Mrs. Hart died on May 18, 2020, in Mercy Hospital of Buffalo, where she had been a patient for several days. The West Seneca resident was 97.

"Margaret Hart's ability to work in watercolor, pastel and oil paint with equal dexterity was impressive, and whether the subject was an individual, a nearby landscape or a floral still life, she confidently composed and rendered each with inspired sensitivity," said educator and independent curator Gerald Mead, who organized two retrospectives of Mrs. Hart's work for the Burchfield Nature & Art Center in 2009 and 2010.

"She was also a thoroughly delightful woman who clearly treasured her many interactions with fellow artists," said Mead.

Mrs. Hart was born on Dec. 21, 1921, in Lackawanna, the third of four children of Dr. Walter and Cora Hartnett Coakley. She graduated from Public School 29 in Buffalo and South Park High School.

"The 1950s were a tough time for a woman who wanted to have a professional career," said her son. Her father, a physician in private practice, wanted her to become a nurse.

She married Eugene P. Hart Sr. in 1943 at Holy Family Church in South Buffalo, just before he enlisted in the Army during World War II. The family lived in South Buffalo until 1955, when they moved into a house they had built in West Seneca.

While she cared for her growing family,  she also carved out time for her art.

"We kids always wondered where Mom found the time to raise six children, change and wash diapers and clothing, iron our clothes, clean the house and care for my father, have dinner on the table at 6 p.m. sharp and paint a couple of landscapes or portraits in between," said her son.

Mrs. Hart was largely self-taught in landscapes, but mastered the art of portraiture under artist George Palmer.

Mrs. Hart was a regular for years at the Erie County Fair, where she would draw and sell charcoal portraits of fairgoers. She also created art, including charcoal portraits, at many venues, including events in the Orchard Park Country Club, the Tea Room at AM&A's, and various malls and businesses.

Mrs. Hart also appeared several times on the classic television show "Meet the Millers," which was aired from 1950 to 1971. "Bill Miller thought she was a great interview and she followed up with a demonstration of excellent skills as a portrait artist and was invited back for several appearances," said her son.

She taught portraiture for many years in her home studio in West Seneca. Her "Ebenezer Workshops," which she held weekly in her studio, attracted many of Western New York's finest artists, including Robert and Jeanette Blair and Martha Burchfield, her son said. One of her fondest memories was meeting Charles Burchfield in his studio as he was completing one of his masterworks.

Over the years, Mrs. Hart received many awards for her portraits and landscapes and was accepted into the prestigious Cooperstown Art Association National Exhibition, where she was awarded a silver medal for portraits of artists Bruce Blair and Bill Parsons.

Mrs. Hart was a past president of the Buffalo Fine Arts League in the 1970s and a founder and past president of the West Seneca Art Society, as well as a member of art societies in Williamsville, East Aurora, Orchard Park and Hamburg. As one of the founders and exhibitors in the early days of the Allentown Art Show, she received a key to the city from Mayor Frank A. Sedita.

The two retrospective art shows Mead organized at the Burchfield Nature & Art Center were an artistic and financial success, her son said. Mead owns Mrs. Hart's 1968 work, "Black Eyed Susans and Thistles," which he exhibited at the Carnegie Art Center in 2011 in "Flora & Fauna: Works from the Gerald Mead Collection."

Mrs. Hart "was a wonderful personality and a free thinker," her son said.

Eugene P. Hart Sr. died on Aug. 30, 1987, after for 43 years of marriage.

Besides her son Eugene P. Hart Jr., Mrs. Hart is survived by two daughters, Susan Halliman and Mary M. Carroll; three other sons, Michael W., Walter R. and Christopher J. Hart; 10 grandchildren; four great-grandchildren; and a great-great-grandchild.

A Memorial Mass will be held later in the year.