Longtime Asnuntuck Art Professor Tony Cirone Dies

ENFIELD, CT — Tony Cirone, who spent more than four decades encouraging creativity and expression from his art and photography students at Asnuntuck Community College, died June 4. He was 78.

After earning a pair of Bachelor's degrees and a Master of Fine Arts degree in sculpture in the late 1960s, Cirone began teaching art at various institutions, including the Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art and the University of Hartford.

He began teaching at Asnuntuck in 1975, when the campus was located in an old warehouse on Phoenix Ave., currently the site of Enfield Superior Court. He founded the long-running student art show, held annually in May, and introduced new courses into the curriculum, including photography, which began with basic still photography with 35mm black and white film and evolved into modern-day digital media.

He officially retired in 2014 and was awarded the title Professor Emeritus of Art. He continued to teach as an adjunct faculty member for several years, and at various times, he owned art studios in Hartford, Windsor Locks, Windsor and Northampton, Mass.

Michael Demers, department chair of Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math at Asnuntuck, said via email, "When I think about Tony Cirone, two things come immediately to mind. He loved being around the students, they energized him and their work excited him in ways that were a pleasure to behold. My office is connected to the art studio, and he'd often knock on my door and share what his class was working on in such a stirring manner - it was hard to keep up with his positivity and enthusiasm. Even with my office door closed, I could hear his "Oooohhh! Look at that!" from across the room. I don't think I've ever met someone who truly loved their job as much as Tony did.

"The second thing, and the one I'll really miss, are the stories he'd tell. He'd start every class with some tale of a trip he took out west, or a new western poster he'd come across (he was a huge collector of old western movie posters). And the students listened, watching this guy who was so clearly excited to share these experiences. Even I'd listen every time, and I'd heard the same stories dozens of times. But the enthusiasm with which he recounted his different adventures was contagious. One was compelled to hear the ending of the story, even if you already knew it."

Retired college president Martha McLeod said in an interview, "I thought he was one of the most fantastic teachers Asnuntuck ever had. His heart was in his work, and he helped students see the world in so many different ways. You can paint a picture that looks like a photograph, or you can paint something totally abstract. He made everyone enjoy what they were doing, and he let his students find the creative part of themselves."

Asnuntuck CEO Michelle Coach said, "Tony was such an amazing and dedicated professor at ACC. He may have retired several years ago, but you would never know it because he spent a great amount of time on campus. I can still see him greeting students at the classroom door with a huge smile on his face. Everyone could see his true love of teaching and working with students."

His creative, energetic mind made him "crazy as a June bug but a really nice guy," said former photography student Debbie Wooding. "He was very patient with my lack of artistic ability."

On the Carmon Family Funeral Homes website, a user named E J Mordasky wrote, "I'll never forget him ... his classes were the best!!!"

Cirone's complete obituary, courtesy of Carmon Family Funeral Homes, may be viewed here.