Garry M. Gilmartin

"Truro, MA, Garry Gilmartin was a realist painter who captured the spiritual in everyday life. He died on Sunday, October 10 at the age of 60 after a long and valiant fight. According to Elizabeth Ives Hunter, Executive Director of the Cape Cod Museum of Art, Garry Gilmartin’s paintings are “a magical window into a world of tranquil beauty.” He managed “to capture the essence of light falling across form and, by passing that image through a personal filter of emphasis and subordination, brought the viewer along to share his inspiration.” Mr. Gilmartin was born in Palmer, November 14, 1949, son of Francis and Dorothy (Diamond) Gilmartin. Following his graduation from Palmer High School, he attended Paier School of Art in Hamden, CT. For the next 15 years, Garry pursued an award-winning commercial illustration career in New York City and Boston. Mr. Gilmartin fell in love with Cape Cod while visiting friends and commercial illustration became a thing of the past as he became immersed in painting New England, its structures and its people. The positive response to his egg tempera and drybrush watercolors came immediately and garnered national awards. In 2008, the Cape Cod Museum of Art honored his work with a One Man Retrospective. Mr. Gilmartin’s art is in many prestigious collections. He also enjoyed fishing and gardening. Besides his parents, two brothers, Richard (1978) and Francis (2002) preceded him in death. He is survived by an extended family including his nephew, Eamon Gilmartin of San Francisco, CA, his cousin Diane Laviolette of Manhattan, and a wide circle of friends including Bill W. Calling hours will be Friday, October 15 at the Beers & Story Palmer Funeral Home, 1475 N. Main St., (Rte. 20) from 5:00 – 7:00 p.m. A funeral mass will be Saturday at 10:00 a.m. in St. Thomas Church. Friends and family may gather at the funeral home on Saturday for 9:00 a.m. to process to the church. Burial will follow in St. Thomas Cemetery. For those wishing, donations may be made to VNA Hospice of Cape Cod, 434 Rte. 134, Suite D3, S. Dennis, MA 02660. "