Brookie Maxwell, American artist and curator, Died at 59

  Artists

Emily Brooke Maxwell was born on October 15, 1956, in Manhattan, and died on November 4, 2015.

The cause was ovarian cancer, her son, Ellis Dolin Maxwell, said.

Brookie father worked at The New Yorker for four decades.

Her mother, the former Emily Noyes, was an artist, poet and teacher who also wrote for the magazine.

Brookie was a painter, sculptor and curator who immersed herself in social causes and viewed art as a spiritual haven for homeless children.

In 1999, Brookie opened Gallery 138, at 138 West 17th Street in Chelsea, which helped start the careers of artists.

She created her own public art installations and produced group exhibitions on subjects such as Hurricane Katrina and the Rwandan genocide.

Brookie passed away at age 59 due to ovarian cancer.