A leading lady at the Art Museum

Phyllis Lyon Clemenko, 91, of Haverford, who guided groups through the treasured galleries of the Philadelphia Museum of Art for 34 years, died of heart failure April 1 at home.

Mrs. Clemenko was a volunteer guide at the museum from 1969 to 2003, conducting diverse audiences including school groups and people with special needs. A volunteer's training includes 18 months of weekly sessions in art history, art appreciation, and the museum's collections; a yearlong internship; and attendance at continuing-education programs.

Mrs. Clemenko guided in every area of the museum, but she especially loved the 20th-century collection, said Kaki Gladstone, the museum's director of volunteer services. Mrs. Clemenko served on the guides' executive board and trained guides for several special shows, including the 1992 exhibition of still lifes by her favorite painter, Picasso.

"Her knowledge and love of art was contagious, and she won the respect of both the museum staff and her guiding colleagues," Gladstone said.

Mrs. Clemenko grew up in Montgomery, Ala., and New York City. After earning a bachelor's degree from Hunter College in New York, she worked in marketing at Young & Rubicam, an advertising agency in New York. There she met Harold B. Clemenko, an editor for Look magazine, and they married in 1949.

The couple moved to Los Angeles in 1954 when he became regional manager for TV Guide, and they moved to the Main Line in 1958 when he joined TV Guide's editorial staff in Radnor. He retired in 1981 and died in 1984.

While volunteering at the museum, Mrs. Clemenko studied for a master's degree in art history at the University of Pennsylvania. She often visited museums and cultural attractions in New York and enjoyed trips abroad. Her favorite traveling companion was her sister-in-law, Louise B. Lyon, who died at 93 a week before Mrs. Clemenko died.

Mrs. Clemenko is survived by daughters Joan and Carol and a grandson.

A memorial service will be held in June at the Art Museum.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Southern Poverty Law Center, 400 Washington Ave., Montgomery, Ala. 36104; or Unicef, 3 United Nations Plaza, New York, N.Y. 10017; or The Philadelphia Museum of Art, P.O. Box 7646, Philadelphia, Pa. 19101.