Born 1924 in Baltimore, MD. Died 2024 in Baltimore, MD
EDUCATION
BFA, Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA) & Johns Hopkins, Art Education
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
1946 - present Designer of Fine Contemporary Jewelry and Products
1955 - present Partner, Cooke & Steinmetz Designers and Consultants
Representing corporate clients as design collaborators with architects for shopping
centers, stores, offices, restaurants, churches, exhibitions, and products
1965 - present Partner / Co-owner with William Steinmetz of THE STORE, LTD.
Village of Cross Keys featuring Betty Cooke Jewelry, designer fashion, and a
broad range of well designed products
1980 Designed gold jewelry line for Kirk Steiff for national distribution
1978 - 1979 Designed jewelry collection of Geoffrey Beene’s New York and Milan Fashion shows
1946 - 1966 Taught Design and Materials, at Maryland Institute College of Art, Baltimore, MD
1946 Restored Tyson Street tenant house as studio and shop for freelance
design of leather, wood, metal, products, and jewelry
SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2021 - 2022 Betty Cooke: The Circle and The Line, The Walters Art Museum, Baltimore, MD
Curator: Jeannine Falino (catalogue)
2014 Betty Cooke: Selections, Goya Contemporary, Baltimore, MD
Curator: Amy Eva Raehse (catalogue)
Dedicated, Betty Cooke and William O. Steinmetz, Decker Gallery, Maryland Institute
College of Art, Baltimore, MD
1995 Design · Jewelry · Betty Cooke, Maryland Institute College of Art, Baltimore, MD (catalogue)
GROUP & TRAVELING EXHIBITIONS
* Indicates permanent collection
2014 Objects: MMAA, Minnesota Museum of American Art, St. Paul, MN
2008 Jewelry by Artists, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, MA*
Fort Wayne Museum of Art, Fort Wayne, IN
2007 Exhibition in Print, Metalsmith Magazine, Society of North American Goldsmiths (S.N.A.G.)
2006 Museum of Art & Design, New York, NY*
2004 Two Capitals: Moscow – Washington Contemporary Jewelry, Washington Guild of Goldsmiths,
Moscow, Russia
2000 Women Designers In USA: 1900 – 2000, Bard Graduate Center, New York, NY
1997 Celebration of American Crafts, Sponsored by American Craft Museum, Copenhagen, Denmark
Messengers of Modernism, Musée des arts décoratifs de Montréal, Montréal, Canada
1995 Musee de Arts Decoratifs de Montreal, Montreal, Canada*
1967 Maryland Artists Today, National Traveling Exhibition
1957 Textiles, Ceramics, & Metalwork, Museum of Cranbrook Academy of Art, MI
Museum of Contemporary Art, Boston, MA
Baltimore Museum of Art, Baltimore, MD
1954 - 1957 Good Design, 1954, Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY
1952 6 Young Baltimore Artists, Whyte Gallery, Washington, DC
1951 Art touring Europe & Asia, Department of State, USA
Young Americans, American Craft Museum, New York, NY
1947 Modern Jewelry Under 50 Dollars, Walker Art Center, Minneapolis, MN*
COLLECTIONS
Musee de Arts Decoratifs de Montreal, Montreal, Canada
Museum of Art and Design, New York, NY
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, MA
Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY
Walker Art Center, Minneapolis, MN
Other Public & Private collections
AWARDS & HONORS
2007 Distinguished Women’s Award, Girl Scouts of Central Maryland
1995 Retrospective Exhibition and Establishment of the Betty Cooke ’46 Scholarship Endowment,
Maryland Institute College of Art, Baltimore, MD
1990 Elected Fellow, American Craft Council
1987 Distinguished Alumni Award, Maryland Institute College of Art, Baltimore, MD
1981 De Beers’ Diamond Today Award, Largest United States Competition for Diamond Jewelry Design,
New York, NY
1979 De Beers’ Diamond Today Award, Largest United States Competition for Diamond Jewelry Design,
New York, NY
PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS
1980 - present Maryland Institute College of Art Alumni Council
American Craft Council
Society of North American Goldsmiths (S.N.A.G.)