RENEE RADELL

RADELL--Renee Kathleen. Renee Kathleen Radell, a Figurative Expressionist painter active from the 1960s through 2010s, passed away peacefully in her sleep on January 21, 2023, in Harleysville, PA, at age 93. Born in Birmingham, AL to Elias and Genevieve Kaupiz, Radell spent her childhood in Detroit, MI, where she studied at Cass Technical High School and received statewide recognition for her bold watercolor paintings. She changed her focus to oil painting with social commentary themes at the Detroit Society of Arts and Crafts, now College for Creative Studies. Over the course of her career, Radell's expansive talent also embraced acrylic painting, mixed media, sculpture, and intaglio. In 1952, Radell married the love of her life, sculptor Lloyd Radell, and, from 1973 through 1983, served as Artist in Residence at Mercy College of Detroit, now University of Detroit Mercy. In the late 1960s, at a time when one-woman shows were still uncommon, Radell began a decades-long series of critically acclaimed exhibits at several mainstream galleries in New York City. In 1981, she moved to the City, where she maintained an uncompromising studio practice and taught at Parsons School of Design. In 2017, Radell retired to Harleysville, PA, where Lloyd preceded her in death on May 10, 2020. Radell is survived by her sister Miriam (the late George Van Wal- leghem); children Nerissa (Russell Gioiella), Kevin, Thaddeus (Elaine Chu), Marc, and Raissa (Elliott Gritz); and grandchildren Theo, Natalya, Ethan, and Nicolas. She will be remembered not only for her prolific creativity and fearless spirit, but also for her playful wit, compassion for the less fortunate, and loving dedication to her family and friends. Her work appears in many public and private collections. The Radell family will hold a private funeral service and suggests that those wishing to honor her memory make a donation to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital or any other charity.