Life of a Devoted Artist and Family Woman

Margot was born with a great passion for art and a dedication to family. Her parents encouraged her creativity from an early age, giving her access to a wide range of artistic mediums and exposing her to the work of many different artists. She showed great interest in art history, studying at Sophie Newcomb College and graduating with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in painting and drawing as well as art history. •

Lifelong Love Affair with Art

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• During her time at Sophie Newcomb College, she worked as a waitress to help support herself while pursuing her artistic education.
• She spent the first few years of her career working as a model and as a designer of ladies’ handbags in New York City.



• Her biggest inspiration from the time she spent in New York was encountering the leaders of the Pop art movement, Andy Warhol and James Rosenquist, and Abstract Expressionism artist Mark Rothko, who would greatly influence her work in the future.
• She eventually gave up on her dream of opening a West Coast art gallery and instead fell in love with Jack Astrachan, whom she married after a whirlwind romance of just three dates.
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• A great source of inspiration for her were also her students who came from different walks of life, each with their own unique stories to share.

Margot gave private art lessons to hundreds of students over a span of more than forty years. She was a devoted mother to her son, Michael, and an active member of her community. She served as president of the 20th Century Club and of the Kennett Ladies Golf Association, and was a member of the Wednesday Music Club and PEO Chapter CY. She worked closely with her husband, mother-in-law Sonia Astrachan, and her brother-in-law Sol Astrachan in the family business, James Kahn Department Store. Margot was also an accomplished craftswoman, with a particular passion for knitting and needlepoint.