Carl Eugene "Gene" Sparkman, Jr.

Carl Eugene “Gene” Sparkman, Jr , of Crownsville, MD died suddenly at his home Sunday, June 13th, 2010. He was 69. Born on February 19, 1941 in Kansas City, Kansas, he was the son of the late, Carl Eugene Sparkman, Sr. and Nettie Marie Mack. Gene grew up in Great Bend Kansas and graduated from Great Bend High School. After high school he attended college briefly before enlisting in the Navy for 6 years. He served in the Vietnam War and after his discharge, continued his college education. He graduated from the Art Center College of Design in Los Angles, CA. He moved to CT where he would make his mark as artist and teacher. His lifelong passion for art and the teaching of it was recognized by all who knew and loved him. Mr. Sparkman predominantly taught drawing and painting the figure, and illustration. Some of the schools he taught at include the Art Students League of New York, NYC for 10 years; Western Connecticut State University, CT; Sacred Heart University, CT; University of Bridgeport, CT; Pratt Institute, NY; Fashion Institute of Technology, NY and briefly at Silvermine Art Guild, CT. Gene Sparkman holds his MFA in Visual Arts from Vermont College, Montpelier, VT, and a BFA in Illustration from the Art Center College of Design, Los Angeles, CA. He is currently represented by the Geary Gallery in Darien, CT and the Whitehall Gallery in Annapolis, MD. Gene Sparkman's work is in many private, corporate and permanent public museum collections world-wide, such as the Butler Institute of American Art, Franklin Library, and the Smithsonian, among others. He was a former Board Member of the Pastel Society of America and elected Master Pastelist in 1984. Exhibitions and major awards in Salmagundi Club, NYC; Allied Artists of America, NYC; Pastel Society of America, NYC; Manchester Institute of the Arts, NH; Canton Art Institute, OH; Butler Institute of American Art, OH; New Britain Museum of American Art, CT; Society of Illustrators, NYC; Society of Illustrators, CA; Rameau Palais, Paris, France, etc. Gene Sparkman studied with such formidable masters of their genre as Joseph Henniger (CA), Harry Carmean (CA), John Asaro (CA) and Rudolf Baranik (NYC). He is listed in Marquis' Who's Who in American Art (1986) under his full name Carl Eugene Sparkman, Jr. He is survived by his long time partner, Sher Sparkman of West Haven, CT; his daughter, Gretchen A. Sparkman of Huntingtown, MD; his brother, Dean Sparkman of Plymouth, MN; two granddaughters, Heidi and Aine Sparkman; step-mother, Laura Louise Sparkman of Hutchinson, KS, and a niece and nephew. A memorial service will be held Saturday, August 14, 2010, in Great Bend, Kansas. The family requests that in lieu of flowers that memorial contributions be sent to Maryland Pastel Society, PO Box 54 Riderwood, MD, 21139. Arrangements where provided by Fellows, Helfenbein & Newnam Funeral Home, 814 Bestgate Road, Annapolis, MD 21401.

Carl Eugene "Gene" Sparkman, Jr.

February 19, 1941 - June 13, 2010