Art professor Mertin, 58, dies

oger Mertin, professor of art and art history at the University, died at his home in Rochester on May 6. He was 58.

Fascinated with taking pictures since he was 13 years old, Mertin earned a bachelor's degree from Rochester Institute of Technology and a master of fine arts degree from SUNY-Buffalo before joining the Rochester faculty in 1972.

Mertin, who was considered a master darkroom technician, gained notice for the emotional nature of his 35-mm photographs in the late 1960s and the 70s but shifted to the larger 8-by-10-inch format for its clearer, photographic quality.

His works are in the collections of national and international museums, including the Museum of Modern Art, the Art Institute of Chicago, the Bibliotheque Nationale in Paris, and the National Gallery of Canada, which owns more than 400 pieces.

During his career, Mertin was awarded fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the New York State Council on the Arts, among others. Recent honors included his selection for a 1999 McKnight Artist Fellowship to Minnesota photographers. He also was recognized with a Minnesota State Arts Board Fellowship for Photography in 1998.

Mertin is survived by his partner, Elizabeth Ihrig, his mother, Margaret Mertin, his sister, Ruth Meyer, and two nieces, Kim Meyer and Kerry Carafano, all of Stratford, Connecticut.

In his memory, the Department of Art and Art History is establishing a scholarship fund for outstanding undergraduate students. Contributions for the Roger Mertin Memorial Prize for Excellence in Studio Art can be sent to: Mertin Fund, Department of Art and Art History, Morey Hall, University of Rochester, Rochester, NY 14627. For more information, e-mail gael@mail.rochester.edu.

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