Sutin, Esther

A kind, affectionate, intelligent, friendly and talented woman with a beautiful smile and great sense of humor, Esther Sutin died peacefully on Tuesday, August

8, 2017 at Brookdale Northwest Hills in Austin, Texas.

For the last several years, Esther had battled ovarian cancer and other health issues, but, finally, succumbed to congestive heart failure at the age of 82.

She is survived by her husband, Michael G. Sutin, a real estate and trust attorney who worked at Sutin, Thayer & Browne as well as Sommer, Udall, Sutin, Hardwick & Hyatt (Albuquerque and Santa Fe, NM); daughters, Jennifer Leonard (Nevada City, CA) and Ellen Macdonald (Austin, TX); son, Brian Sutin (Pasadena, CA); and younger sister, Bette Allen (Tucson, AZ).

Besides being a wonderful sister, wife, and mother, Esther is a grandmother to six grandsons and was a matriarch to a large, extended family in Colorado, New Mexico, California, Georgia, Nebraska, New York and beyond.

Born in Manhattan on June 23, 1935, Esther was raised in Brooklyn, NY. After studying art for 5 years and graduating high school, she worked as a graphic artist in an advertising agency in NYC. While attending the University of Arizona, Esther met Michael at a Hillel meeting when they were sophomores. In 1956, at the ages of 21, Michael and Esther were married in Kansas City, MO. They moved to Albuquerque, NM so Michael could attend law school at University of New Mexico. Esther completed her studies and earned a B.A. in Art (cum laude).

During her adult years and while she was raising her children, Esther was an ultra-talented artist who worked in many different mediums: classic oils, acrylics, watercolors, pencils, collages and woodcarving. In Albuquerque, she was involved in many art organizations, including American Pen Women and the Watercolor Society. She served as standards chair for many juried art shows, and was a founding member of an art cooperative – The Contemporary Art Gallery in downtown Santa Fe.

Esther was raised in the Jewish tradition and attended services at Reform and Reconstructionist synagogues. She was a “tireless” volunteer for Hadassah in Albuquerque and Santa Fe.

Esther was buried in Eloise Woods Natural Burial Park – a “green” cemetery in Cedar Creek, TX (just outside of Austin), which is owned by her daughter, Ellen Macdonald. Ellen sewed a special shroud for her mother. She was buried in “Quiet Time Garden,” named after one of Esther’s oil paintings.

Esther was loved – and all her family and friends will miss her.

Donations in Esther’s name can be made to Education Fund at The Contemporary Art School in Austin: 3809 West 35th St., Austin, TX 78703

(thecontemporaryaustin.org)