Mary Ann Scherr

I thought she was still alive because I saw her solo exhibition at the Akron Art Museum when I was working there in the late 90’s. I could swear I saw her in person, but that might just be my mind playing tricks on me. I was deeply saddened to learn she passed on March 1st, 2016 at her home in Raleigh, NC at the remarkable age of 94.

Mary Ann Scherr was born on August 3rd, 1921 in Akron, Ohio. A relentless learner, she trained anywhere she could reach by car from Akron, attending the Cleveland Institute of Art (CIA), The University of Akron, and Kent State University. After graduating, she stayed in the Akron area and worked as a cartographer and illustrator for Goodyear. She later made history at Ford Motor Company as the first woman hired in their automotive design division—very cool already, right?

Her creative life was astonishingly multifaceted. She designed toys and games, illustrated children’s books, worked as a clothing and graphic designer, and eventually found her most profound artistic voice as a metalsmith. She taught as an associate professor of metals at Kent State from 1967 to 1978 before accepting a role as chair of the Product Design Department at Parsons School of Design in New York City.

Mary Ann Scherr is especially revered for her pioneering work in medical jewelry. Long before the now-ubiquitous medical alert bracelets, she developed wearable pieces that combined life-saving function with beauty and dignity. Her designs included bracelets that concealed heart monitors, pendants that served as respiratory aids, and elegant adornments embedded with critical medical information—helping transform perceptions of what “assistive devices” could look like. She often worked in stainless steel, niobium, and titanium, exploring innovative processes that were as forward-looking as the healthcare technologies she incorporated. In doing so, she blurred the lines between art, craft, industrial design, and medical engineering.

She is remembered for her energetic personality, her fearless use of exotic metals and new techniques, and for mentoring countless students around the world. By my count, she won over 10 major design and lifetime achievement awards and even had a solo exhibition at the Vatican Museum of Art in Rome.

I’ve been dedicating this blog to the history of studio jewelry, recently focusing on Ohio jewelers who forever changed the course of metalsmithing. Please feel free to share or leave feedback—I’d love to hear your thoughts or personal memories.