Joseph V. DeLuca (1935-2023)
On June 6, at the age of 88, Joe made the final brush stroke on the canvas of his life. He was the eldest son of Dominick and Nancy (Annunziata Magno) DeLuca. Born on March 1, 1935, in Niagara Falls, NY, he grew up around an abundance of loving, dynamic Italians who helped shape his charismatic personality and fostered his life-long pursuit of athletics and art. He attended Bowling Green State University (BGSU), where he received both his bachelor's and master's degrees. He was a member of Delta Tau Delta fraternity and played on the football team under the tutelage of assistant coach, Bo Schembechler. In his freshman English class, he met Mitzi Kohring, of Toledo, OH. They married immediately after graduating from BGSU on June 10, 1957. Twins followed one year later (Joe and Julie), and a third child followed four years after that (Dana). He received a Master of Fine Arts degree from Michigan State University, and his evolution as an artist was deeply influenced by Willem de Kooning, Jackson Pollock and Antonio Tapies. He began his collegiate career as an art teacher at Central Michigan University. In 1966, with his young family in tow, he moved from Mount Pleasant to Kalamazoo to join the Art Department at Western Michigan University, where he taught painting and drawing until his retirement as Professor Emeritus in 1996. He was happiest when working in his studio, creating art and enjoying the occasional cigar. He and Mitzi raised their family on Tipperary Road, where the door was rarely ever locked, and where friends, neighbors, emerging artists, students and fellow colleagues were welcomed in for a glass of wine and cherished conversation. Joe and Mitzi's marriage ended after 27 years, but their love and mutual respect for each other lasted until her passing in 2018. Joe's extended sabbaticals to Italy and Portugal would become the most profound influences on his life and artwork, which he described as abstract expressionism, and a natural extension of his interests in antiquity and richly developed textural patinas through the utilization and combination of paint, collage, inlay and found objects. Joe was a tireless educator and beyond prolific as an artist, hosting more than 40 solo exhibitions and 50 group exhibitions, including numerous private collections of his work exhibited in the United States and Europe. He was also a fiercely competitive athlete. In addition to his talents on the football field, he was skilled at basketball, track and field, golf, handball, and began competitive long-distance running in the 1970's. He went on to compete in the Bermuda Marathon, the Skylon International Marathon and the Boston Marathon (twice), as well as numerous other road races over the decades that followed. Prior to his retirement, he moved to Traverse City, which he called home for over 30 years, and where he met his longtime partner, Anne Leonardi, whom he married in 2022. Joe and Anne shared a deep bond and their love endured until the very end. In 2011, they collaborated on a retrospective book of Joe's artwork, entitled Selected Works: Five Decades, containing more than 138 images that chronicle over 50 years of drawings, paintings and constructions. Describing his life as an artist, Joe said, "It's about creating art with intuition and emotion, and if the artist lives long enough and works consistently, he or she will hopefully find a voice that will ring true and clear…good work comes, not from talent or a gift from a higher power, but rather from hard work, discipline and struggles." Joe is survived by his wife, Anne; brother, Carl DeLuca (Judy); three children, Joseph DeLuca (Marla), Julie DeLuca (Thomas Leibold), Dana DeLuca (Ken Greschak); stepdaughters, Kelsey and Nikki Leonardi; grandchildren, Lucas Leibold (Rylee), Mia Leibold, Liv DeLuca, Gabby DeLuca, Emma Greschak, Meghan Waite (Dan), MacKenzie Greschak Carroll (Em), Tressa Greschak (Alex Demetralis) and nieces and nephews. Celebrations honoring Joe's remarkable life will be hosted by family and friends later this year in Kalamazoo and Traverse City. The Richmond Center for Visual Arts at Western Michigan University will host Joseph V. DeLuca: A Retrospective Exhibition, from August 19-September 20, 2024. Memorial contributions in Joe's memory may be directed to The Gwen Frostic School of Art at Western Michigan University to support scholarships for art students ( www.wmich.edu/art/giving ) or The Dennos Museum Center at Northwestern Michigan College in Traverse City ( www.nmc.edu/about/foundation/ ). Family and friends are invited to share a memory or special tribute at www.reynolds-jonkhoff.com .