- Date Of Birth: October 23, 1974
- Date Of Death: October 2, 2022
- State: Arizona
Matia, Bethany Lynn, 47, of Paradise Valley, AZ passed on October 2, 2022. Bethany was an attentive daughter, loyal sister, and proud aunt. She was predeceased by her mother, Barbara, and is survived by her father, Robert, brother Douglas (Abigail), nephews William and Christopher, aunts Carolyn Wallace (Charles) and Nancy Wright (Gary), uncles Paul Matia and Lee Matia (Carol) and a large extended family and friends. Bethany was born in Cleveland, OH on October 23, 1974, and raised in Scottsdale and Paradise Valley after a family move across country in 1978. She attended Phoenix Country Day School where she remained through the 9th grade, transferring to Xavier College Prep for the remainder of high school. Bethany graduated from Denison University in Granville, OH where she received a BA in Communications. She also completed a BBA in Fashion Marketing from Parsons School of Design of the New School University in New York City. Finally, she enrolled and completed all course work toward a Master of Arts in Visual Culture: Costume Studies at NYU, needing only to complete her thesis to receive her degree. Bethany spent most of her career at the Costume Institute of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. She began as Assistant to Harold Koda (then Curator in Charge), Andrew Bolton (now Curator in Charge) and Lita Semerad (Administrator) working in general administration and on the Friends of the Costume Institute in its infancy. Bethany was promoted to Senior Research Assistant in 2008 where she aided on exhibition and outgoing loans, and on acquisitions. In 2012, Bethany became the Costume Institute’s point of contact for all registrar communications including incoming loans, outgoing loans, and interdepartmental loans programs. She worked closely with curatorial, conservation and collections teams to maintain the loans calendar, advise on lender relations, and improve the Costume Institute’s records within the Museum’s artwork database. Most notably, Bethany worked on the following Costume Institute exhibitions in partnership with her colleagues: Superheroes, Model as Muse, American Woman, Alexander McQueen, Schiaparelli and Prada, PUNK, Charles James, Death Becomes Her, China, Manus x Machina, Rei Kawakubo / Comme des Garçons, and Heavenly Bodies. Bethany lived in New York City for more than 20 years and was passionate about its many cultural and culinary offerings. She was an ardent supporter of the Metropolitan Opera and the NYC Ballet. Together with friends, she explored museums, sampled interesting trends in cuisine, and enjoyed the sights, sounds and energy of the city. Although raised in Arizona, she became a New Yorker at heart.
