A memorial service is set to be held on May 17 for Professor Emeritus Jacob Jerome Brody, fondly known as Jerry, at The University of New Mexico campus. Brody passed away on May 5, 2024, at the age of 95, surrounded by his family at home. He leaves behind his wife Jean, their children Jefferson Lindsey Brody, Jonathan Edward Brody, and Allison Janet Brody, five grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.
Brody was interred on May 7 near his home in San Pedro in a small graveside service attended by family and close friends. The public memorial service will take place from 4-6 p.m. in the Anthropology Building, Room 163, on the UNM campus.
With a distinguished history at UNM that included roles at the Maxwell Museum and in the Department of Art History until 1989, Brody was the first director of the Maxwell Museum of Anthropology after its renaming and relocation to its current building. He curated several major exhibitions that toured nationwide.
Born on April 24, 1929 to Aladar and Esther (née Kraiman) Brody in Brooklyn, N.Y., he was the youngest of four siblings (Rebeca, Bertha, and Soloman). After serving during the Korean war, he moved to New Mexico in 1955 quipping: “If the Dodgers can move west, so can I!”
He met his wife Jean shortly after classes began at UNM during a six-week-long pithouse dig. They were married in 1956 and enjoyed a lifelong partnership filled with laughter, adventure, travel work and raising their family together.
Brody earned his Certification in Fine Arts from Cooper Union in 1950; his BA from UNM in 1956; his MA from UNM in 1964; and his Ph.D. from UNM in 1970. He was a professor of Anthropology, then of Art History, at UNM from 1965-1989; and Professor Emeritus since 1989.
He authored 16 books, many of which were foundational in the art history world. A respected scholar and sought-after lecturer, Brody was a pioneer in his field. He explored Mimbres pottery and other southwest Indigenous art forms from the perspective of an art historian and anthropologist, often co-creating knowledge systems with contemporary Pueblos.
Brody traveled extensively with his family, including camping trips through Europe, bike-packing tours of France and England, and numerous trips to Mexico. However, he found constant wonder in New Mexico’s skies.
Lawrence Straus, the Emeritus Leslie Spier Distinguished Professor of Anthropology at UNM paid tribute to Brody saying: "He was a wonderful man, a great, level-headed, cheerful, supportive colleague and a towering figure...in Mimbres and Southwestern ceramic studies...UNM and Southwestern archeology owe him a big debt for his many long-term contributions."
