Lisbeth Firmin

Lisbeth Firmin, artist, wife, mother, grandmother, sister, aunt and friend, died on Wednesday, August 13th, 2025 from lung cancer. Born in Paducah, Kentucky, Lisbeth knew she was an artist from an early age, drawing ever since she could hold a crayon and won her first coloring contest at age six. Considered an art protégé, she was awarded several summer scholarships to the John Herron Art Institute in Indianapolis. After her family relocated to L.A. she received scholarships, at the age of sixteen, to study at the Chouinard Art Institute, the youngest student awarded. She spent one year at UC, Santa Barbara before dropping out when she was told she couldn't study just art. It was around this time that she met Tom Moore, fellow artist. He was struck, not only by her beauty, but by her incredible talent. "Beth put weight, movement and fire in her marks," said Tom. They fell in love, travelled from California to another art colony in Atlanta, Georgia, where they got married and heard about a place called Provincetown, Cape Cod, the Hollywood for artists. By this time, Lisbeth was pregnant with their daughter, Autumn. They supported themselves by doing portraits, spending summers in P.Town and winters in Puerto Rico. In 1978, Lisbeth took Autumn to New York City, to pursue her art beyond portrait studios. She worked hard, both to put food on the table and get her art career off the ground, while raising her daughter. She worked at National Lampoon and then King Features Syndicate, where she met many life-long friends. Starting with art shows in her apartment on Sullivan Street, NYC, she got noticed by gallery owners and began showing and selling her work to the point where, in 1998, she was able to quit her 9 - 5 job and commit herself fully to her art. During this time, and long after, Lisbeth has been the recipient of many accolades, honors and prestigious awards. She has been written up in countless articles, along with a plethora of one-man and group shows. She taught art nationally and internationally. Her work features in museum collections, private collections and corporate collections. She defined herself as a contemporary American realist whose paintings and monoprints explore the relationship between people and their environment, capturing the energy and light of a moment in time. In 2000 Lisbeth moved to the Catskill region in upstate New York and in 2011 she fell in love with and married John Exter. Together they traveled the world, including trips to England to spend time with her granddaughter, Pippa, hiked the Catskills, and created a rich life filled with art, family, and friends. Lisbeth is survived by her husband John Exter, her daughter Autumn Moore Morrison, her granddaughter Pippa Morrison, her brothers Carl Young and Matt Firmin and their spouses and children, her stepson Paul Exter, her daughter-in-law Julie Exter, and grandchildren Danny Exter, Jamie Exter, and Tommy Exter as well as countless friends. Lisbeth, like her art, is unforgettable and much loved.