Robert “Bob” Hartzell, a Washington University in St. Louis staff member who served in a variety of roles, died Saturday, July 6, 2024. He was 62.
The son of public school teachers, Hartzell studied printmaking at Northeast Missouri State University (now Truman State) but, before graduating, moved to Chicago. There, he became lighting director for Lounge Ax, the influential rock club, and created hand-screened gig posters, beginning with Screwball Press, for Son Volt, The Pogues, Wilco and other prominent bands.
Hartzell later completed his bachelor’s degree in fine arts from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and his master’s in fine arts from the University of Missouri-Columbia. Relocating to St. Louis, he exhibited at Subterranean Books and at the Pulitzer Arts Foundation, among others. He joined the WashU staff in 2018, working as an assistant at the Institute for School Partnership warehouse. He later worked in employee heath, COVID-19 operations and parking operations.
Hartzell is survived by his wife, Gretchen Vaughn, also a staff member at WashU; his mother, Donna Johnson; and siblings, John and Beth. Memorial contributions are suggested to the Regional Arts Commission of St. Louis or to Tenth Life Cat Rescue.