In memoriam: Gai Gherardi

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On March 14th, 2025, we lost our beloved Gai Gherardi. A thirty-plus year Board member, and Board President at the time of her passing, she was a gentle yet powerful force in the life of Art Matters. 

We honor her memory through the words and images gathered here, reveling in the exuberance she wore on her sleeve and the sparkle of her luminescent smile. Many have told her story beautifully—we invite you to read the remembrances below from Art Matters Board and Staff, along with her obituaries in INVISION Magazine and the New York Times.

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Gai is survived by her life partner of 50 years, Rhonda Saboff; her sister Heather Gherardi; nephew Jett Schuster, grandnephew Mason Schuster; grandniece Stelle Schuster; stepsisters Michelle and Rene Gherardi, and goddaughters Sula Fay and Pazia Luz Bermudez-Silverman.

Gai touched more hearts than we could ever know, and we will always cherish the wonder and joy she radiated during her time on this earth. We love you forever, Gai. 

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Video Board Interview with Gai Gherardi, 2015.

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"Gai was deeply curious about every person she met, and once she found out everything about you she followed it up with an endless river of generosity. She was so busy asking that you kind of had to pry to get her to tell, but once you did…wow. She let drop some little pearls here and there, that she grew up in a kind of a hippie circus, that she loved the Cotati Accordion Festival, that her Benz was her 'mind spa' and so many other precious, charming, one-of-a-kind details. She was endlessly, relentlessly focused on doing good. We need her spirit now more than ever."
‍–Marianne Weems

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"I was always impressed by the fact that Gai found a way to adorn herself in a style that was chic, put together and entirely personal. You could never miss her in a crowd. That indicated to me a woman who knew herself and was sure of her identity and how she presented herself to the world. I aspire to such a level of self-awareness. OH...and also she was a hot flash of joy and enthusiasm that scorched my day whenever I saw her."
‍–Lowery Sims

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“Devastated by the passing of Gai Gherardi—beloved gay auntie to so many of us, mother of tortoises, face-affirming designer of eyewear, style icon, magic spreader, artist lover—Gai was tapped into some kind of light and life-ness, joy in everyday little gestures, that she shared so generously with everyone in her orbit. I was blessed to work with her for years at Art Matters. I remember driving around LA in her creampuff vintage Jaguar as she told tales from the 1960s like writing fake eye prescriptions to help folks dodge the draft. I am so grateful to have had time in the world with her and to know that we now have one powerful ancestor.”
–Sacha Yanow

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‍"Partly because she was an artist to her core, Gai Gherardi understood the impulse to make and do the most daring, boundary-defiant, and personal expressions possible. Usually under-appreciated by those who set aesthetic standards and definitions, the artists who most interested Gai exist in the unsupported margins of culture, the ones who because of the lives they live and the work they do expand the definition of art. She treated all with dignity and her joy-filled, generous nature was contagious. Everyone behaved better when around her. Artists loved her—her huge heart, her sparking smile, and her unique and glorious style—very much including the artist with whom she shared her life for decades, Rhonda Saboff. Inimitable and original, Gai wrote new rules for eyewear design, challenging the possibilities of accessories at large. She helped shape the most adventurous version of Art Matters. It’s impossible to capture the brilliance of her presence. The world deflated when she died. Those of us lucky enough to wear her glasses—each a work of art— are homages to Gai, the brightest light among us." 
‍–Philip Yenawine

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“Gai was one of the great beauties. She was inimitable in most ways, but perhaps most magnificently in her kindness. To borrow a phrase from a friend, she was a hearth of a person. I can feel her warmth even now and it is showing no signs of diminishing. I LOVE YOU, GAI!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”
–Claire Morton
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‍"Gai and Barbara were among the first entrepreneurial artists who changed Los Angeles forever. When they opened their first store on Melrose I remember people telling me about the shop and urging me to go. LA was a different place then: a few well known restaurants, Perino’s, Scandia’s, Chasens, Musso and Frank's. But Gai became one of the city’s standbys when LA was busting out all over. I remember the first Greg Gorman fashion ads for the shop on Melrose. It was an exciting time. Gai was on the Board of LACE when I joined, so this was the first time I got to know her. When I joined the Board of Art Matters, I thought that Gai would be a perfect fit, and, of course she was! She was such an inspirational gay icon. A pillar of the nascent LA art scene and a character to be reckoned with. Her bright silk pajama inspired outfits were her trademark, but it was her Optical frame designs that made her a legend. There are so many memories I have of Gai, all of them treasured for the rest of my life. I remember going to her house that she shared with her beloved Rhonda at the top of La Brea, and seeing the pool filled to the brim with junk, and a house which would never be finished, and the tortoises roaming the grounds. This was LA for me, an eclectic assemblage of found objects that morphed into an art form. For me, Gai is a true artist, and I will truly miss her and her generous heart."
–Bruce Yonemoto

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"Gai was the bee’s knees. The most, mostest sweet pea, soooo kind and generous and sharp as a tack. Vibrant and brilliant. I don’t think we had a single conversation that didn’t leave a mark on me —Either by the way she cut right through the bullshit, eloquently, gently, or tenderly about something most people gloss over. I loved how much she loved music. Gai never missed a chance to see a show, of anyone, performing anything! From accordion fairs to metal shows at The Pyramid (so I’ve heard tell). We both loved Joni, 'we are stardust, we are golden...' well, at least she was. I hope she’s out there twinkling in the sky, crackling through the mycelium, bubbling in the lava, sparkling in the waves. My heart aches for Rhonda, and Joy and Sula and Heather, and countless others who loved her. If you knew Gai, even a little, you couldn’t help but adore her, and I certainly did. Shine on you crazy diamond."
‍–Abbey Williams

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‍“Every year, on December 1st for A Day Without Art, Gai created an in-store playlist to celebrate those we lost in the AIDS crisis, inviting her friends—the queerest of artists and activists—to each choose one song. I’d sift through so many favorites—deep cuts, fierce and feverish dance tracks, teary jams about love and loss - songs that seemed to know my soul before I even did. A small gesture by Gai that restored me, and so many others, every year. Gai was humble in her brilliance, always putting others first, her light shining on those she met. Her legacy is one of love and beauty, and the art of seeing the world through a frame that captures the heart. “
‍–Catherine Gund

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“It’s impossible to write about Gai in the past tense. I can’t. I’m finding that she is still present in so many ways: the luminous imagination she brings to each encounter, the quality of her care. But most of all, it is her love of people that resonates in our work, her choice to look into their eyes and hold their faces in her hands. That quality conveys what Natalia Ginzberg describes as one of the great virtues: 'not a desire for success but a desire to be and to know.' I wish tearfully that I could hug Gai again and I’m so grateful for what she continues to give us.”
–Linde Earle

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“Most brilliant Gai
Most generous Gai
Most gorgeous Gai
Most extraordinary Gai
We are so grateful for your friendship 
You have deeply touched our lives
We are missing you like crazy.  

With warmest love forever,
Mary Beebe”
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"I miss Gai so. Though, increasingly, I think of her on a higher journey, sending us tender messages to carry on. 

I thought I would go into my glasses drawer today to remind myself of all the beautiful frames Gai had sent my way over the years. I’m reminding myself of the terrific special ones that she would place in front of us at meetings, or frames that she would choose for Mimi, Claire, and me in the store. Lucky us.

She knew our faces better than we did.

Gai was the consummate artist herself. She was a walking painting. She brought that to the Art Matters table along with her wisdom and incisiveness.

Her words could be strong but always with a tone of gentleness.  She always led us in her belief in the power of art and art makers.

Though we didn’t see you enough, Rhonda, thank you for being such a loving partner to Gai and sharing her with us. Bless you. 

Let’s carry on in Gai’s spirit. Art now, more than ever!

Love to all the lovers of Gai,
Gracie"

–Laura Donnelley

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