Obituaries

BARBARA S. BOWMAN
June 30, 1925-April 22, 2021
Barbara Sue Bowman (95) was born on June 30, 1925 in Los Angeles CA to Florence and Oscar Safan. Barbara grew up in Los Angeles and attended Fairfax High School. She went on to attend the University of Southern California where she joined the sorority Alpha Epsilon Phi. Her sorority sisters became her life long friends, sharing milestones for over 7 decades. While at USC, she met the love of her life Morton J. Bowman, a 2nd Lieutenant in the U.S. Army. They married on January 17, 1945 and were together until his passing in 2018.
Barbara was an accomplished artist and painter and followed her passion while raising her three daughters, Linda, Andrea and Gayle. Barbara and Mort traveled the world over with friends and took their daughters to Europe on several extended adventures.
Through her periods of artistic creativity, Barbara transitioned into large expressionist oil portraits. Her broad spectrum of work included recognized and exhibited series of professional boxers and renown restaurant chefs of Los Angeles. Following an extended trip to Japan, Barbara became fascinated with historical Japanese printmaking, having earned her own Designation in Printmaking at UCLA.
Starting in the 1970’s she amassed a priceless collection of celebrated Japanese wood block prints from the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries. In 2016 her collection was exhibited at the Los Angeles County Art Museum along with the publication of the book “Living for the Moment,” which focused on her life and the collection. Her generous gift of 100 of her prints to LACMA is in constant use for educational purposes.
Barbara was also active in the Beverly Hills Art Commission and served on the commission for several years. She was instrumental in expanding the public art collection in that city.
Throughout her life, Barbara found happiness and satisfaction sharing life experiences and milestones with her daughters, Linda Caplan, Andrea Straus (Joe Straus) and Gayle Rosenberg. She adored her 8 grandchildren and 11 great grandchildren who brought her tremendous pleasure and joy in her later years. Barbara’s beautiful spirit and character enhanced the lives of everyone she touched.
A private memorial will be held at Hillside Memorial Park. A celebration of Barbara’s life will be announced at a later date.