Mary Lummus Douglas

Mary Douglas, whose life-long passion for the arts included careers as a jewelry designer, fashion editor, sculptor and painter, passed away on September 19, 2015 in Charleston, South Carolina. She was 98. The relatives and friends of Mrs. Mary Douglas are invited to attend her Memorial Service at 2:00 PM, Saturday October 24, 2015 at Bishop Gadsden in Charleston. Mary grew up near Asheville, North Carolina, and after high school traveled to New York to visit her grandmother. She was accepted at Radcliffe College but it was the Depression and so she took a job as a fashion model with Bergdorf Goodman. After the death of her husband, Paul Kruming, an advertising executive, Mary became a fashion editor at Harper's Bazaar and Vogue magazines, working with her friend, Diana Vreeland, and such photographers as Richard Avedon, Irving Penn and Helmut Newton. She later worked for Tiffany, Black Starr & Gorham and Bulgari, eventually designing customized jewelry for private clients. In 1960, she won her first three design awards at the De Beers Diamonds International competition. Mary spoke Spanish, French and Italian, and there were few places in the world that she had not visited. She loved playing the piano, particularly classical music. And she became an accomplished sculptor and painter. Later, she married J. Gordon Douglas, Jr. and they lived in Newport, Rhode Island, Santa Barbara, California and Millbrook, New York before moving to Charleston more than 25 years ago. Mary is survived by a son, four grandchildren, a great grandchild and a brother. Her only other son died. Donations in Mary's memory may be sent to the College of Charleston's School of the Arts.