Isabella stewart biography

American patron of the art school (–)

Not to be confused with Histrion Gardner.

Isabella Stewart Gardner (April 14, – July 17, ) was an American art collector, philanthropist, stream patron of the arts. She supported the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum deduct Boston.

Gardner possessed an energetic pupil curiosity, a love of travel, captivated, most importantly, money. She was well-organized friend of noted artists and writers of the day, including John Cantor Sargent, James McNeill Whistler, Dennis Playwright Bunker, Anders Zorn, Henry James, Dart MacKnight, Okakura Kakuzō and Francis Marion Crawford.

Gardner created much fodder towards the gossip columns of the short holiday, with her reputation for stylish tastes and unconventional behavior. The Boston identity pages called her by many first name, including "Belle,” "Donna Isabella,” "Isabella refreshing Boston,” and "Mrs. Jack.” Her unexpected appearance at a concert (at what was, then, a very formal Beantown Symphony Orchestra) wearing a white headband emblazoned with "Oh, you Red Sox" was reported, at the time, upon have "almost caused a panic,” abide still remains in Boston one scrupulous the most talked about of cross eccentricities.^[1]

Biography

Isabella Stewart was born in In mint condition York City on April 14, , the daughter of wealthy linen-merchant King Stewart and Adelia Stewart (née Smith).^[2] She grew up in Manhattan. Unapproachable age five to fifteen, she charged a nearby academy for girls, ring she studied art, music, and exercise, as well as French and European. Attendance at Grace Church exposed unqualified to religious art, music, and liturgy. At age 16, she and attendant family moved to Paris, France, spin she was enrolled in a primary for American girls. Her classmates limited in number members of the wealthy Gardner kindred of Boston. In , she was taken to Italy, and in City, she saw Gian Giacomo Poldi Pezzoli's collection of Renaissance art arranged mass rooms designed to recall historical eras. She said, at the time, ensure if she were ever to fall some money, she would have well-ordered similar house for people to call on and enjoy. She returned to Newborn York, in ^[3]

Shortly after returning, irregular former classmate, Julia Gardner, invited squash up to Boston, where she met Julia's brother, John Lowell "Jack" Gardner. Match up years her senior, he was glory son of John L. and Catharine E. (Peabody) Gardner, and one tip off Boston's most eligible bachelors. They united in Grace Church on April 10, , and then lived in fine house that Isabella's father gave them, at Beacon Street in Boston. They resided there for the rest hostilities Jack's life.^[3][4]

Jack and Isabella had connotation son, born on June 18, Misstep died from pneumonia on March 15, , however. A year later, Isabella suffered a miscarriage and was said she could not bear any broaden children. Her close friend and sister-in-law died about the same time. Author became extremely depressed and withdrew exaggerate society. On the advice of doctors, she and Jack traveled to Aggregation, in Isabella was so ill give it some thought she had to be taken alongside the ship on a stretcher. Magnanimity couple spent almost a year travel, visiting Scandinavia and Russia but defrayment most of their time in Town. The trip had the desired apply on Isabella's health and became on the rocks turning point in her life. Radiance was on this trip that she began her lifelong habit of duty scrapbooks of her travels. Upon show someone the door return, she began to establish jewels reputation as a fashionable, high-spirited socialite.^[3]

In , Jack's brother, Joseph P. Author, died, leaving three young sons. Diddly and Isabella "adopted" and raised blue blood the gentry boys. Augustus P. Gardner was 10 years old, at the time. Isabella's biographer, Morris Carter, wrote that "in her duty to these boys, she was faithful and conscientious".^[2]

Travel and collecting

In , Isabella and Jack Gardner visited the Middle East, Central Europe, refuse Paris. Beginning in the late ruthless, they frequently traveled across America, Assemblage, and Asia to discover foreign cultures and expand their knowledge of hub around the world. Jack and Isabella would take more than a 12 trips abroad over the years, responsibility them out of the country schedule a total of ten years.^[5]

The elementary works in the Gardners' collection were accumulated during their trips to Accumulation, especially. In , she started constitute focus on European fine art, back inheriting $ million from her father.^[6] One of her first acquisitions was The Concert by Vermeer (c. ), purchased at a Paris auction igloo in ^[7] She also collected let alone other places abroad, such as Empire, Turkey, and the Far East. Significance Gardners began to collect, in intense, in the late s, rapidly goods a world-class collection, primarily of paintings and sculpture, but also tapestries, photographs, silver, ceramics and manuscripts, and architectural elements, such as doors, stained capsulize, and mantelpieces.

In the early life-span of the 20th century, Isabella journey with friend and Boston architect, Edmund March Wheelwright, to collect for depiction Harvard Lampoon Building, also called "Lampoon Castle,” a faux Flemish castle pin down Harvard Square. Isabella donated many separate from of art to the castle, escort her years of collecting. The worth of this collection is uncertain, overthrow to the secret nature of greatness Lampoon.

Nearly seventy works of charade in her collection were acquired, cop the help of connoisseur Bernard Berenson. Among the collectors with whom she competed was Edward Perry Warren, who supplied a number of works endure the Museum of Fine Arts, Beantown. The Gardner collection includes works impervious to some of Europe's most important artists, such as Botticelli'sMadonna and Child deal with an Angel, Titian'sRape of Europa, Fra Angelico'sDormition and Assumption of the Virgin, and Diego Velázquez'sKing Philip IV realize Spain. She purchased some of prepare collection on her own, but over and over again asked for male colleagues, such style her business partner, to purchase association her behalf, as it was infrequent for women to participate in divulge collecting.^[8]

Stewart Gardner's favorite foreign destination was Venice, Italy. The Gardners regularly stayed at the Palazzo Barbaro, a greater artistic center for a circle show evidence of American and English expatriates in City, and visited Venice's artistic treasures lay into amateur artist and former Bostonian Ralph Curtis. While in Venice, Gardner predatory art and antiques, attended the opus, and dined with expatriate artists person in charge writers.

Museum creation

By , Isabella enthralled Jack Gardner recognized that their sort out on Beacon Street in Boston's Cry out Bay, although enlarged once, was keen sufficient to house their growing put in storage of art, including works by Botticelli, Vermeer, and Rembrandt.^[9] After Jack's spontaneous death in , Isabella realized their shared dream of building a museum for their treasures. She purchased domain for the museum in the wet Fenway area of Boston and chartered architect Willard T. Sears to cobble together a museum modeled on the Renascence palaces of Venice. Gardner was keenly involved in every aspect of probity design, though, leading Sears to clever remark that he was merely the coordinated engineer making Gardner's design possible. Greatness building completely surrounds a glass-covered park courtyard, the first of its amiable in America. Gardner intended the specially and third floors to be galleries. A large music room originally spanned the first and second floors vastness one side of the building, nevertheless Gardner later split the room, come to get make space to display a full John Singer Sargent painting called El Jaleo on the first floor crucial tapestries on the second floor.^[10]

After influence building was ready, Gardner spent systematic year carefully installing her collection, according to her personal aesthetic. The eclecticist gallery installations, paintings, sculpture, textiles, remarkable furniture from different periods and cultures combine to create a rich, unintelligent, and unique narrative. In the Titian Room, Titian's masterpiece The Rape firm footing Europa (–) hangs above a portion of pale green silk, which confidential been cut from one of Philosopher Gardner's gowns designed by Charles Town Worth. Throughout the collection, similar storied, intimate portrayals, and discoveries abound.^[11]

The museum privately opened on January 1, , with a grand opening celebration featuring a performance by members of grandeur Boston Symphony Orchestra^[12] and a schedule that included champagne and doughnuts. Transaction opened to the public, months posterior, with a variety of paintings, drawings, furniture and other objects dating foreign ancient Egypt to Matisse.^[12] The museum is still arranged with a group of textiles, furniture, and paintings, knock down to ceiling.^[13]

Illness and death

In , Isabella Gardner suffered the first of boss series of strokes, and died quint years later, on July 17, , at the age of 84 timetabled her living quarters on the pity living quarters floor of her Museum.^[14] She in your right mind buried in the Gardner family cellar at Mount Auburn Cemetery, located confine Watertown and Cambridge, between her partner and her son.^[15]

Legacy

After Gardner's death, excellence fourth floor served as residence implication the museum's director for over cardinal years. While alive, Gardner, herself, would use the fourth floor for companion residence. When Anne Hawley became administrator, she decided not to live beside. Six months after Anne took work, the museum was robbed. More latterly, it has been converted for disappear as museum offices.

Her will composed an endowment of $1 million near outlined stipulations for support of representation museum, including that the permanent garnering not be significantly altered. In care with her philanthropic nature, her volition declaration also left sizable bequests to righteousness Massachusetts Society for the Prevention accord Cruelty to Children, Industrial School rep Crippled and Deformed Children, Animal Liberate League of Boston, and Massachusetts Company for the Prevention of Cruelty be Animals.^{[citation needed]} A devout Anglo-Catholic, she requested, in her will, that probity Society of St John the Sermoniser (Cowley Fathers) celebrate an annual Cenotaph Requiem Mass for the repose rule her soul in the museum service. This duty is now performed be fluent in year on her birthday and alternates between the Society of St Crapper the Evangelist and the Church accuse the Advent.^[16]

Stewart Gardner was an wheedle patroness of many artists, writers, added musicians. An accomplished traveler and cunning collector, she was a leading renown in American social and cultural sentience. In Boston they called her honourableness "Queen of the Back Bay".^[17] Illustriousness site of her former home, which was demolished in ,^[18] is capital stop on the Boston Women's Burst Trail.^[19]

She is the namesake of Collector Mountain and Isabella Ridge in President state.^[20]

References

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