Mary L. Gray

Mary was born in Chicago on July 10, 1929, to Harry Joseph Lackritz and Therese Steif Lackritz. Her childhood was filled with art, music, literature, and creative people. The family business, Lackritz Jewelers, of Chicago and Beverly Hills, was founded by her grandparents Paul & Bertha Lackritz, in the mid-1890’s and inherited by her father.

Mary attended Francis W. Parker School in Chicago, then earned her undergraduate degree in English at Bryn Mawr College in Philadelphia. She worked briefly as a copywriter, then married Richard, who passed away in 2018.

Mary raised her three children, Paul, Jennifer, and Harry, and received her graduate degree in art history from The University of Chicago. She went on to pursue a career as an art historian, authoring two books on public sculpture and murals in Chicago.

Throughout her life, Mary embraced, cultivated, and generously shared her powerful intellect and thirst for cultural enrichment, alongside her husband Richard, who founded Richard Gray Gallery in 1963. She was the loving heart of her family and will be dearly missed.

Mary is survived by her two younger sisters, Susan Kaplan of San Francisco, California, and Ann Fuller of Oberlin, Ohio; her children, Paul L. Gray (and his wife Dedrea), Jennifer Gray (and her husband Scott Wilkerson), and Harry L. Gray (and his wife Katrine); her grandchildren, Emily (and her husband Mark), Ian, Caitlin (and her husband Eric), Asia and Vienna; and her two great-grandchildren, Maeven and Sadie.

Together Mary and her husband Richard created a place where artistic and intellectual exploration come together to push the boundaries of art and scholarship. If you’d like to make a gift to honor her legacy and extend the important work of the Gray Center for Arts & Inquiry at the University of Chicago, you may do so by making a gift online at:

https://givetoday.uchicago.edu/campaigns/78051/donations/new?designation=Richard+and+Mary+L.+Gray+Center+for+Arts+and+Inquiry+Gift+Fund&utm_content=48W2710AA

A memorial service for remembrances will be held at a later date.