Gary C. Breitweiser *61

Gary died Dec. 8, 2021, in Santa Barbara, Calif.

He was born Jan. 28, 1937, in Alton, Ill. He earned a bachelor’s degree at Northwestern in 1959. Awarded a National Science Foundation fellowship, Gary earned a master’s degree in chemical engineering at Princeton in 1961.

Gary began his career as a chemical engineer at the Mallinckrodt Chemical Works in St. Louis. He left Mallinckrodt to accept a position as research associate at McDonnell Douglas, eventually moving to Santa Barbara to accept a position as a research scientist at Sloan Technology Corp.

While working at Sloan, he invented a scientific instrument called the Dektak, which is still used in science and technology.

In 1970, Gary left Sloan Technology to pursue his passion in the fine art and antiques world. A leader in the development of the California art and the American arts and crafts markets, he worked with museums and publications to educate, consult, and write about these genres. A passionate collector who loved research, he was a noteworthy art dealer and appraiser.

Gary is survived by many close friends and colleagues from the antiques and fine art world whom he considered family.

Graduate memorials are prepared by the APGA.