NAIAD EINSEL

Naiad June Einsel, 88, of Westport, CT died in her home on April 3, 2016, surrounded by loving family and caregivers.

Naiad was born in Philadelphia on June 6, 1927. Her lifelong love of art began in her father’s grocery store, where she drew on the brown wrapping paper. After attending the High School of Music and Art in New York City, she graduated from Pratt Institute.

Naiad met the love of her life, her late husband Walter, while they were both art directors – Naiad at CBS, and Walter at NBC. They were introduced when Walter applied for a job at CBS. “I didn’t get the job,” he said later, “but I got the girl.”

They were married in 1953. Their similar styles of work enabled them to work collaboratively in their Victorian farmhouse on book and magazine illustrations, posters, advertisements, package designs and collage boxes. They also made inventive collage cards for each other, and collections of their Valentines were featured many times over the years in local galleries and newspapers. In tribute to her memories and love for Walter, Naiad published Art From the Heart, a collection of 46 years of handcrafted Valentines that she and her husband exchanged, in 2008.

Naiad’s illustrations appeared in Redbook, Collier's, Look, Good Housekeeping, The Ladies' Home Journal, Woman's Day, Family Circle, Cosmopolitan, The New York Times, Travel & Leisure, Food & Wine, and Smithsonian Magazine, and in books from Doubleday, Macmillan, Random House, Harcourt Brace & Jovanovich, Clarkson Potter, and Workman Press. She also designed record album covers, movie posters and TV commercials; her clients included M&M, Xerox, Proctor & Gamble, and Chase Manhattan. The Einsels were the first husband-and-wife team to create stamp designs for the U.S. Postal Service. Both Naiad and Walter were inducted into the Society of Illustrators Hall of Fame in 2008.

From the time Naiad and Walter moved to Westport from New York City in 1965, they were active participants and supporters of the town’s vibrant arts community. Naiad also had a keen interest in preserving and celebrating the town’s history. She designed and directed the production of the award-winning Westport Bicentennial Quilt, sewn with the assistance of 33 women, which has been on display in Westport’s Town Hall since 1976. In 1996, Naiad and Walter assisted with the design of the seven-sided barn that stands outside the Historical Society. And in 2005, the Einsels received a Preservation Award for their home; in 2007, their home and property was designated a Local Historic District. Naiad was granted a Westport Arts Awards Lifetime Achievement Award for Art in 2011.

Naiad was admired for her tremendous artistic talent but also for her warmth, compassion and love of life. She loved to attend folk music concerts, and enjoyed playing guitar and banjo as a hobby. Most of all, she loved to invite friends -old and new- to her folk-art filled Victorian home to share stories of her life. She will be truly missed.

Mrs. Einsel is survived by her daughters and their spouses, Leslie and Philip Chase, of Westport, CT, and Hilary and Mark Newby, of Norwell, MA. She leaves her sister, Jacqueline Thompson, of Leonia, NJ, as well as seven nieces and nephews, five grandchildren – Lisa Bastoni, Peter Newby, Willow Souther, Evan Newby and Emma Newby, and four great-grandchildren. In addition to her beloved husband Walter, she is preceded in death by her elder sister Phyllis Lipman, and her parents Esther and Samuel Giblan.

A celebration of Naiad’s life will be held at 2:00pm on Sunday, June 5, 2016 at the Westport Historical Society, 25 Avery Place, Westport, CT. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be sent to the Westport Historical Society.

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