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The Walters Art Museum: an Institutional History

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The Walters Art Museum: an Institutional History The Walters Art Museum: An Institutional History To understand a museum and its mission, it is best to step back and view the museum in its entire history. The first years of a museum set the tone for its purpose and mission. Additionally, the founders of a collection may have a significant and lasting impact. Some trends will continue throughout the story, while other trends will be deemed unimportant and will be cast aside as the times change. The mission and acquisitions philosophy may drastically evolve, or it may remain the same. The Walters Art Museum in Baltimore has a long legacy crafted by its founders that has shaped it into what it is today. Since it was begun, The Walters has striven to act as a center of education, a base for community outreach, a philanthropic force in Baltimore, as well a varied and eclectic collection of art and artifacts. The beginning of The Walters is much like any other art museum: William Walters and his son Henry had a passion for art and instead of hiding their amassed collection from the world, they chose to share it. Add more about their mission and purpose. In order to best understand The Walters and it’s evolution, it is essential to understand the men that founded it. Their passion for community engagement and a collection policy that represented many regions and periods in art were their founding principles. Throughout its history, The Walters has evolved, grown and gone through periods when some facets of its mission were held up above others. But it has come full circle, and many of its founding principles are integral to its mission today. “The Walters Art Museum brings art and people together for enjoyment, discovery and learning. We strive to create a place where people of every background can be touched by art. We are committed to exhibitions and programs that will strengthen and sustain our community.”1 So reads the current mission statement of The Walters Art Museum – a mission that reflects the emphasis on community engagement that was so important to the museum’s creators, William and Henry Walters. This vision remains important to the museum, and is seen in their collection, programming, and their decisions about museum policy. This mission statement also points to their commitments to philanthropy and education. The biography of the Walters men illustrates how it has come to be one of the most esteemed public art museums in the country and how it has maintained that position. They are a strong part of its history. William Thompson Walters was born May 23, 1819 in Liverpool, Pennsylvania. His father, Henry Walters, worked for the Harrisburg National Bank, but late in his life “suffered financial reverses” and died poor and indebted.2 Little is known about the early life of William Walters: it is thought that he studied civil engineering at either the University of Pennsylvania or some other private academy in Harrisburg. 3 By 1841, William was newly set up in Baltimore, Maryland, and well into a career in commerce. It is no coincidence that brought Walters to Baltimore – the city had experienced an economic and real estate boom between 1830 and 1850. During this time, the city’s population nearly doubled.4 Baltimore had become a large port city and both the maritime and rail industries were making it increasingly accessible. These opportunities drew William to the booming city and he soon was partner in the firm Hazlehurst and Walters, importing produce and grocery goods from central Pennsylvania. In 1846 William married Ellen Harper, whose family was also in the mercantile business. The couple had three children: William Thompson Jr. (died 1 The Walters Museum of Art, “Mission,” The Walters Art Museum, http://thewalters.org/about/mission.aspx (accessed March 15, 2014). 2 Johnston, William R., William and Henry Walters, the Reticent Collectors (Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 1999), 1. 3 Ibid., 3. 4 Ibid. Hughes 2 early childhood), Henry, and Jennie. By 1857, the young family had taken up residence in the Mount Vernon Place, an area on the north side of Baltimore.5 During this time, William also began investing in the railroad industry, particularly the Baltimore and Susquehanna Railroad Company; the railroad would continue to be a prosperous venture for both William and Henry throughout their lives. Until the antebellum period,, Baltimore’s arts and culture scene were unimpressive.6 Beginning in the 1810’s Art galleries in the city at this time included Rebrandt Peale’s (son of Charles Willson Peale) Baltimore Museum and Gallery of Pictures, which opened in 1814 with a twenty-five cent admission fee.7 Through local civic organizations,9 Walters made many acquaintances in the arts world including Robert Gilmor Jr. (possessor of a collection with an estimated four hundred paintings) and Granville Sharpe Oldfield (collection numbering into seven hundred).10 This period of art collecting in Baltimore drew heavily on local artists, but also ventured into the New York market, specifically the Hudson River School. Walters began his collecting with gusto and guile: one of the first art auctions he attended pitted him against Johns Hopkins, Thomas Swann, and S. Owings Hoffman – all wealthy Baltimore men and known art collectors. He also began his lifelong role as patron in 1855, when he sponsored the young artist, William H. Rinehart’s first trip abroad. The 1858 Cosmopolitan Art Journal said about Walters’ patronage “has given many artists commissions, and with an 5 Ibid., 5. 6 Ibid., 9. 7 Hunter, Wilbur H. Jr., “Peale’s Baltimore Museum,” College Art Journal 12, no. 1 (Autumn 1952): 31. 9 One of these local organizations was the Allston Association, a group originally founded by a group of Baltimore artists and socialites. The group would meet to socialize, discuss art and theater, as well as perform musical and theatrical pieces. The group met at the Saint Paul Street home of Frank B. Mayer, until their meetings were halted by the federal government, on that grounds that many of the members of the group were known secessionists and Southern sympathizers. 10 Ibid., 11 Hughes 3 enlightened liberality rarely met with in [sic] America, neither limits them to size, price, nor subject.”12 During his lifetime, Walters was patron to many artists through sponsoring their artistic education, trips abroad, and the commissioning of many works of art. By 1861, The Walters collection was gaining notoriety, and had become known as “one of the finest private collections in the country [embracing] some of the best works of the best modern artists.”13 But in that same year, Walters and his family left Baltimore – Walters had many business ties in the South and supported the southern states and their right to secede. After a number of prominent Baltimoreans were jailed for acts of Southern support, the Walters family moved to Paris late in the summer of 1861. Upon their arrival in France, William made contact with his many art connections in Europe. William and his wife Ellen took numerous trips throughout Europe during their years abroad. They visited many of the famous art collections in France, including the collection of the late Count J.-A. Pourtalès-Corgier. The count had an extremely diverse collection including paintings by the Dutch Masters and works of the Italian Renaissance. He also collected Renaissance bronzes, ivories figures, and many Asian works of art.14 This extensive collection certainly influenced Walters, his ideas on collecting, and what a well-curated collection should look like. Walters cultivated many relationships during this period – relationships that would prove to be extremely useful during the rest of his art career. George Lucas (1824- 1909) became Walters’ good friend and art dealer in Paris.15 Lucas and Walters remained friends and partners for the remainder of their lives. 12 “Domestic Art Gossip,” Cosmopolitan Art Journal 3, no. 2 (March 1859): 88. 13 H.G.S., “Art Matters in Baltimore,” Boston Evening Transcript, March 4, 1861. 14 Johnston, 26. 15 George A. Lucas was a prominent art dealer during the middle 19th century. Born in Baltimore, he eventually moved to Paris and worked as a dealer for Walters and other prominent businessmen, including William Henry Vanderbuilt. He also acted on behalf of his clients in overseeing commissions and as a host and tour guide when his clients visited Paris. Hughes 4 William Walter’s time abroad was a thorough education in art. His travels took him throughout France, through much of Italy, and into England. Sadly, during a trip to London in 1862, Ellen Walters developed pneumonia and shortly died.16 William remained in Europe for two years following his wife’s death, continuing his traveling and collecting, and returned to the U.S. in 1865, at the conclusion of the Civil War. 17 Upon returning to Baltimore, he continued his collecting and began transforming his Mount Vernon property into a private gallery.18 Many of the rooms on the main floor were outfitted in various period decorations and furniture that Walters had collected while abroad. The post-war time was a fruitful one for The Walters collection. William continued to collect, frequenting auctions in New York City. He also put his collection on display for the first time. On February 26, 1884, Walters opened his home and collection to the public. There was a reception of two hundred men, including many foreign ministers and dignitaries, several Baltimore City officials, and a number of Walters’ art collecting friends.19 The entire rear of the house held the exhibit, which included statues and porcelains, bronzes and watercolors (by Walters’ favorite artist, Antoine-Louis Barye), paintings, historical books and manuscripts, and many Asian artifacts.20 The galleries were all decorated in rich wallpapers, dark wood accents, and lush carpets.
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