GRIDLEY MCKIM-SMITH

MCKIM-SMITH--Gridley, died on October 18, 2013 from an acute bacterial infection. Born in Clinton, IA on March 14, 1943. She studied at Tulane (BA 1965) and Harvard (PhD 1974). She was married to Benjamin Franklin Smith III (Frank) from 1969 until his death in 1990. In 1982, while serving as a Senior Fellow at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., she came to Bryn Mawr College as Assistant Professor, becoming Mellon Professor in 1999. Gridley was a trailblazer in Latin American, costume and gender studies and in her emphasis on technical scientific examination of works of art. Examining Velazquez (1988) was the first publication of this kind at the Prado Museum. Undeterred by over 40 years of multiple sclerosis, Gridley taught ardently, traveled extensively and will be remembered lovingly by all who knew her. She will be buried in Quincy, FL, next to her husband. A memorial service will be held in New York City at a later date. Donations in her name will be gratefully accepted by The Gift of Sunshine (thegiftofsunshine.org), the organization that trained two of Gridley's service dogs.