Barbara Gunther died on March 12, 2021, at her home in Palo Alto, surrounded by the family she loved so unreservedly during her long life.

Born November 10, 1930, in Brooklyn, New York, Barbara was the youngest child of Benjamin Kelsky and Rose Lev Kelsky, immigrants from the former Russian Empire. She grew up in Brooklyn, living with her parents and brothers over the family’s candy store. Among her talents was the mixing of excellent egg creams.

The family worked long hours in the store, with little time or money to venture beyond the neighborhood. When Barbara was in junior high school, a teacher noticed her drawing ability, and took her to visit the art museums of Manhattan. That experience helped inspire a 55-year career as a painter and lithographer; her work is collected in the Museum of the City of New York, among other places, and can be viewed at www.barbaragunther.net. The play of light, darkness and shadow, which fascinated her as a child watching the broken light stream through elevated subway tracks near her home, was an enduring theme in her art — and a source of inspiration during wide-ranging travels she undertook as an adult.

After attending New York City’s High School of Music and Art, Barbara graduated from Brooklyn College at age 18, majoring in history. That same year she married Gerald Gunther, who became a professor of constitutional law at Columbia and Stanford law schools. They were married 53 years, until his death in 2002. When her husband was a law student, she supported him by working as an elementary school teacher. Their son Daniel was born in 1955, followed by Andrew in 1958.

After returning to school in her forties and earning a Master of Fine Arts degree from San Jose State University, Barbara taught life drawing, color theory, and other visual arts courses at Cabrillo College, in Aptos, California, for 20 years. Beginning in 1965 she was a professional artist, and was working on a large canvas during her final year. She was a member of vibrant art communities in San Jose — where her first studios were at the Citadel and downtown — Palo Alto, where her last studio was in the former Cubberley High School, and the Santa Cruz area. During her career Barbara had 15 individual exhibitions, and a greater number of group exhibitions, at galleries and museums in the United States and Europe.

Barbara’s home was open to the entire family, and we treasured the many seders, Hanukkah parties, and dinners shared with her there. Ten years ago, Barbara moved from her longtime Stanford home to the Moldaw Residences in Palo Alto, where the gatherings continued — often, as before, in the company of beloved family members (lack of blood ties notwithstanding) Teresa Moore, Michael Doherty, and Prema Harris, along with dear nieces and nephews Stephanie and Robin Gluck, Alan Kelsky, and their families. The immediate family is grateful to the good friends she made at the Moldaw for making her (and us) feel so welcome. We also thank Annabelle Donaldson for the skilled and loving care she provided during Barbara’s final year — a year cruelly circumscribed by the pandemic, which would have been more painfully isolating without Annabelle’s kind companionship.

Devoted since childhood to American ideals of equality, pluralism and constitutional democracy, Barbara agonized during her final four years about our national future. She was relieved and heartened when the new president took office in January. On her last night she watched a presidential address with her grandson, and made those feelings clear once again.

In addition to her husband, Barbara was predeceased by her two brothers, Irving and Milton Kelsky; a nephew, Alan Kelsky; a niece, Judy Gutenstein Estes; and her parents. She is survived by sons Daniel, of San Francisco, and Andrew, of Santa Cruz; daughters-in-law Susan McCarthy and Penelope Sargent; grandchildren Katherine McCarthy of San Francisco and Joseph Gunther of Paris, France; Kitty’s partner, Nicholas Jay Aulston; and great-granddaughter Asa Bea McCarthy Aulston —born two months before Barbara’s death, and whose arrival brought Barbara much joy at the end of her life. She is also survived by her nieces and nephews: Stephanie Gluck and her husband Joel Gluck, of Florida; their children Robin Gluck of San Anselmo and Eric Gluck of New York; Robin’s husband Evan Lloyd, and their son Eli; Susan Lilien and her husband Steven of Ardsley, New York, along with their children — Justin of Philadelphia, Ben of Brooklyn, and Rachel Shapiro of Freehold, New Jersey and their families; Jane Cabasso and her husband Arnie Cabasso of Fair Lawn, New Jersey; and their children, Elissa of Queens, New York and Glenn of Fair Lawn and Manhattan; Mary Kelsky of Roseville, California; Jason Kelsky and Addison Kelsky of Madison, Wisconsin; Richard Kelsky (Ellie Benz) of Stillwater, New Jersey; Steven Kelsky (Barbara) of Bonita Springs, Florida; Michelle Estes of Maryland; and Eileen Estes and Linda Kaplan of the Bronx, NY.

A memorial service will take place once it is safe to gather together again. If desired, donations in Barbara’s memory may be made to the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society (HIAS; www.hias.org) or to a recipient of your choice.