Janis Cooper

Janis Cooper, a most accomplished and talented woman, died on the 4th of November just short of her 100th birthday.

Growing up a product of the depression, Janis graduated Manchester Central High School in New Hampshire at age 16 and went to Boston to the New England School of Art where she studied portraiture with Ernest L. Major. While in Boston, she ran into Harold, a sailor who swept her off her feet. They were married on March 23rd, 1947 and moved back to Manchester, where they had two sons, Ron and Jeff. Janis worked as a free-lance artist for over 35 years, as well as a colorist, designer and catalogue artist for international companies like Pandora Sweaters. She commuted to New York City at times, designing both a swimsuit and tennis line for Rose Marie Reid.

Janis' paintings were exhibited as a solo artist at the Copley Society in Boston and have been shown in at least six countries. She set an example for excellence and inclusiveness.

She was a terrific athlete who took up fencing in her thirties while commuting to NY City – with Al Alexrod, Father of Modern Fencing. At 42 she finished second in a New England competition that included the college teams. Janis was also a champion bridge player – having studied with Bill Ogust.

With husband Harold, she became intricately associated with the archeology scene in Israel - drawing 3D artifacts of the Hasmonean and Herodian excavations as they were unearthed - meeting and befriending the most famous archeologists in the Middle East including Yigal Yadin and close friend Ehud Netzer - being invited to the homes of five of Israel’s Prime Ministers and invited as guest of the City of Jerusalem’s guest house for artists and scholars, Mishkanot Sha’ananin, for four years. What began as a yearly pilgrimage to work on archeological sites turned into a lifelong passion and Janis and Harold bought an apartment in Jerusalem, where they lived 5 months per year.

Their experience took them to Tzippori, where they were part of the team that uncovered the famous 3rd century AD Roman mosaic floor that came to be known as the Mona Lisa of the Galilee. And their help with the restoration of the Menorahs of Antiquity allow them to have a half dozen of the greatest in the Israel Museum with their names attached. Her book on her experiences in Israel was very well received.

Harold and Janis set an example for anyone observing - the ability to enjoy all aspects of life - retiring by age 50 with 'just enough' they traveled the world - living with the cannibals of New Guinea and riding in a jeep in the midst of a million plus wildebeest in the Serengeti Plains of Africa. They invented themselves over and over. They lived fully and with enthusiasm.

Janis is survived by her children, Ron and Rebecca Cooper and Jeff and Abby Cooper. She took great joy in her close family, and was a loving grandmother to Sara and Doug Berkson, Aaron and Emily Cooper, and Nicole and Matt Welch and a loving great-grandmother to Noah, Eva, Gabe, Leah, Syrah and Illidyn. Her extended family includes Felicia and Tom and Kamar and Yasmine, Sarina and Blai and Prakash and Kathya and Kabir, and Salim and his son Anan.

We thought she would beat the odds and be the first to live forever. She will be missed greatly.

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