Obituary of Lori Cucchiaro

Lori Blount Cucchiaro, native New Yorker, arts advocate, sister, aunt, devoted wife and mother of twins, died peacefully the evening of Monday, March 1st, 2021, due to complications from COVID 19 and sarcoidosis.

Lori was born in Brooklyn, New York, the youngest child of Juanita and Roscoe Blount, who migrated to the Northeast from the South during the Great Migration in the 1940s. She attended the Elizabeth Irwin school in the West Village in NYC and earned her Baccalaureate at Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts, where she studied Government and Political Science. She spent significant time in Paris, France where she studied at the Sorbonne and L'Ecole des Beaux Arts. 

She was known for her work in public relations, fundraising, special events, and not-for-profit organizations, notably Artists Space, the New York Studio School of Drawing, Painting, and Sculpture, Everson Museum of Art, the Philadelphia Public Library and the Philadelphia Museum of Natural History.

Lori had an uncanny ability to make anyone and everyone feel at ease in her presence, with her humor, and sense of fun. She had a zest for life that was infectious to all. If you were lucky enough to visit a museum with Lori you would be sure to leave with the ability to write an MFA level dissertation on every art period from Rococo to the Impressionist. However, it wasn’t always High Art with Lori and somehow she could turn a drab Friday of Netflix and pizza into an unforgettable night. Known for her generosity, style, and wit, Lori was a trendsetter before her time and touched many with her joie de vivre! 

Lori Blount Cucchiaro is survived by her husband of 25 years, Dr. Giovanni Cucchiaro, and two beautiful daughters, Eloise and Isabelle, her beloved sister Anita Harvey-Edwards, nieces - Dr. Kristen Harvey and Rachel Rowan, nephews - Yasunari Rowan and Jason Harvey, grand-nieces and nephews and numerous cousins and friends.

She will be missed by all who have been touched by her beauty, intelligence and personality through the years. 

In honor of her memory, please consider donating in Lori’s name to the Smith Fund, 33 Elm Street, Smith College Northhampton, MA 01063, email: thesmithfund@smith.edu or the Smith College Museum of Art at https://www.givecampus.com/campaigns/15043/donations/new