Diane Destiny, a well-known and beloved fine artist in the Southern California arts community, died peacefully on January 15, 2022 surrounded by family in Ventura, CA. The cause of death was complications of dementia. Born Diane Sidney Davis in August of 1938, in San Diego, CA to Sidney Lanier Davis and Eleanor Nida Davis. She attended Point Loma High School, accomplished her teaching credential at San Diego State University, and later a Master of Arts degree from CSU Los Angeles.
Throughout her art career, Diane found joy in teaching children of all ages, and later in life, taught art at numerous colleges including Mission College, CSU Northridge, and CSU Los Angeles.
While at San Diego State, she met her first husband Richard Lee Manning. They had two children and divorced in 1971. She then married Japanese-American artist Shiro Ikegawa. Her marriage to Ikegawa sparked her career as a fine artist, a passion she carried on for the rest of her life. She and Ikegawa dissolved their marriage in 1979.
Her work was exhibited extensively in the United States and is in permanent collections at the National Museum of Women in the Arts, Washington, DC and the Brand Library, Glendale, CA. She is also featured in the book, “Feminists Who Changed America 1963 – 1975.”
After having had multiple surnames over the course of two marriages, she claimed her identity and officially changed her name to Diane Destiny. She purchased her own home, built an art studio on the property and settled in with her two children as they were entering high school. The home became known as a safe space among her children’s high school friends, full of laughter and creativity. Diane lived a full and happy life in her Altadena home for forty years, creating her art, sailing and traveling extensively, and enjoying family and friends. She was fortunate to fall in love again and enjoy many wonderful years with her boyfriend Ken by her side. In 2019, she moved in with her son and daughter-in-law in Ventura, CA.
Diane was creative, compassionate, adventurous and accomplished. She embraced everyone she met and has inspired so many to live passionately and love fully.
She is survived by her brother, Laurence Lanier Davis of San Diego, CA, her two children, Richard Lee Manning II of Ventura, CA and Leslie Diane Leinbach of Poway, CA, daughter-in-law Roylin Downs, son-in-law Kurt William Leinbach, four step grandchildren, three step great grandchildren and her partner in love, Kenneth Brown.
In lieu of flowers or gifts, the family requests donations to the Pasadena Armory Center for the Arts. https://www.armoryarts.org/support/
Gone From My Sight
I am standing upon the seashore. A ship, at my side, spreads her white sails to the moving breeze and starts for the blue ocean. She is an object of beauty and strength. I stand and watch her until, at length, she hangs like a speck of white cloud just where the sea and sky come to mingle with each other.
Then, someone at my side says, "There, she is gone."
Gone where?
Gone from my sight. That is all. She is just as large in mast, hull and spar as she was when she left my side. And, she is just as able to bear her load of living freight to her destined port. Her diminished size is in me -- not in her.
And, just at the moment when someone says, "There, she is gone," there are other eyes watching her coming, and other voices ready to take up the glad shout, "Here she comes!"
And that is dying...
-Henry Van Dyke