Biography
March 5, 1915 - April 9, 2012
Pearl Piegari was born on March 5, 1915 in Brooklyn, New York.
She was the youngest child and only daughter of Felix Natiello and Ann Pasquale. She had four older brothers, Patsey, John, Vincent, and William Natiello. In 1916 at the age of 1, Pearl contracted Polio during the worst epidemic in the 20th century. This disease would challenge her mobility throughout her life, but she never let it stop her from leading a productive life.
She married Angelo Piegari, her high school sweetheart, in her early twenties. Angelo was the oldest son of 12 children, and had also contracted polio at a young age. Together, they had two sons, Gregory and William, both of whom were motivated by their parents to graduate college as engineers.
In the late 1950s (early 1960s), after her children were grown, Pearl attended art classes, a passion both she and her husband developed in high school. This was the start of a 50 year painting career. She was a prolific painter. Her first pieces were charcoal sketches but then she quickly moved to various other mediums including pastels, oils, acrylics and watercolors. For the majority of her career, she utilized the impressionist style, but also dabbled in still life and abstracts paintings.
She painted portraits and various other commissions, but she loved to express her creativity by painting a wide range of subjects and objects; many of the ideas coming from objects she found In and around her home. She studied the Impressionist Masters and then recreated some of their famous works. She then moved to beach, field and house scenes, and for many weeks painted picture after picture; studying and learning the effects of light and shadows. She moved to flowers, still lives and other subjects, enjoying the different style learning while continually improving her skills. She displayed her art in local art shows, winning many awards for her works. She also displayed her works at various businesses, municipal buildings, the Senior center, and the library in her home town. This offered her the opportunity to accept commissions from interested people and organizations.
Later in life she taught art at the local senior centers and other venues. She inspired many with her creativity, talent and dedication.
As a member of the Hillside Art Workshop, the Kenilworth Art Association, and the Montclair Pastel Society Art Club, her works have be exhibited at the Newark Museum, PSE&G, Hoffman La Roche, Kessler Institute, Hillside Library, Merck, Elizabethtown Gas and others. She won 1st place in the NJ state "Alive and Still Kicking" exhibit. Her works are also in many private collections. Pearl was a versatile painter, proficient in many mediums and won 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place ribbons throughout Union county and the state in her 35 year career. She was an art instructor at the Hillside Senior Citizen Center until 2007 and was a former president of the Charles Rose League.
Pearl A. Piegari died on Sunday April 8th 2012 at Beth Israel Hospital in Newark, NJ. She was 97 years old. Pearl is survived by her 2 sons, Gregory and his wife Marie and William and his wife Arlene, 5 grandchildren and 11 great grandchildren.
