Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney (1875-1942), sculptor,
art patron
Julianna Force (1876-1948), museum director
The New York Studio School occupies the original
site of the Whitney Museum of American Art and recalls the successful
partnership between two visionaries: Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney, whose
patronage built the foundations of the Whitney Museum, and Julianna Force,
the Museum's first director and the person who molded Whitney's original
concept into a workable enterprise. The two women created the first museum
exclusively devoted to exhibiting American Art while sponsoring the
greatest number of non-academic artists in the United States. The genesis
for this type of museum dates back to 1914 when Whitney opened the Whitney
Studio to exhibit her personal collection and prevailed upon Force to
manage it. In 1929 she offered the entire collection--nearly 500
pieces--to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, along with an offer to build a
new wing. The offer was rejected, and in 1931 Whitney, after remodeling
the studio in a more Moderne and Classical revival style, opened the
Whitney Museum with Force as the gallery manager. Under Force, the museum
avoided the simple display of established artists, preferring to exhibit
the progressive side of American Art. The Whitney became the first museum
to display American abstract art and it was instrumental in reviving
interest in 19th-century American artists such as Winslow Homer and Robert
Feke. The Whitney moved from this location in 1954. Thirteen years later
the New York Studio School saved the building from demolition. With a
faculty of renowned artists, art historians, and critics, the New York
Studio School has been educating students in the rigors of art since 1967.
The New York Studio School, a National Historic
Landmark, is located at 8 West 8th St. in New York City, NY. Tours of the
building are by appointment only. For tour information, contact Lauren
Wibauer at 212-777-0742.
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