Renée Simon, who died on March 17, 2020, was my best friend. We met about 50 years ago and had many things in common. We were both born in 1937. We were both married to bearded artists, she to the sculptor Sidney Simon, I to the painter Paul Resika. The two men were close friends and members of the Long Point Gallery in Provincetown, so we met often.
We both lived in Truro and in New York City. During the summer Renée and I swam at a bay beach every few days, usually at Noon’s Landing in North Truro, or took long walks on the ocean. During the winter we met at Carnegie Hall about once a month to hear chamber music. Every few years we took a trip together, either to Jamaica or to visit my daughter in Los Angeles. I will miss our times together.
Born Renée Lane Adriance in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., she lived there with her mother, father, and sister, Mary Jane, until she went to college. She graduated from the University of Michigan with a fine arts degree. Later she got a degree in social work from Fordham University. When she married Sidney, she became a stepmother to five children: Mark, Teru, Nora, Rachel, and Juno; later they had two sons, Nick and Tony.
Renée was a beautiful, elegant, and very intelligent woman. She was quiet-spoken and not very gregarious. She played the piano, but never in public. And she was extremely courageous. In November 2014 she was diagnosed with cancer, and until her death, made constant trips to get chemotherapy, enduring nausea and sometimes pain most of her days. She never complained.
Anyone who knew Renée would attest to her depth and patience. She will be sorely missed by many, many friends and relations. —Blair Resika
