By Lawrence Baron
SAN DIEGO — Janet Brody Esser died early morning May 22 from cancer and injuries related to a recent auto accident.
Born and raised in Brooklyn, she received her BA from the University of Iowa, MA in art history with an emphasis on anthropology and archeology from California State University, Long Beach, and PhD in art history from UCLA. She retired as a professor emerita after teaching in the Art and Latin American Studies Departments of San Diego State University from 1975 until 2003. During her tenure at SDSU, she became a member of the Lipinsky Institute for Judaic Studies faculty board.
Brody Esser was a renowned expert in the fields of Mexican folk art and indigenous Mexican culture, especially those of the state of Michoacán. In 1988 She served as the senior curator of “Behind the Mask in Mexico,” an exhibition mounted by the Museum of International Folk Art in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities.
She edited the illustrated catalog for the exhibition and authored several essays in it on mask-making and the ritual use of masks by the Michoacán. Published by the Museum of New Mexico Press, the catalog won the Hubert B. Herring Memorial Award for the best scholarly book published in 1988 from the Pacific Coast Council for Latin American Studies. In 2006 Los Amigos del Arte Popular bestowed its annual Van Deren Coke Achievement Award on her for her contributions to scholarly knowledge and an appreciation of American and Latin American folk art.
Brody Esser was predeceased by her husband Robert Radlow in 2007. She belonged to Temple Emanu-El and to the Latin American Arts and Arts Education Councils of the San Diego Museum of Art. Friends say she will be fondly remembered for her companionship, cooking, eloquence, intellect, and above all, her passion for Mexican folk art, hundreds of pieces of which adorned the walls and shelves of her home.
A graveside service will be held on Thursday, May 23, at 10 a.m. at El Camino Memorial Park, 5600 Carroll Canyon Rd, San Diego, CA 92121.
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Laurie Baron, professor emeritus of history at San Diego State University, is a columnist for San Diego Jewish World. he may be contacted via lbaron@sdsu.edu / Obituaries and eulogies in San Diego Jewish World are sponsored by Inland Industries Group LP in memory of long-time San Diego Jewish community leader Marie (Mrs. Gabriel) Berg.