James Whitney Fosburgh

James Whitney Fosburgh (August 1, 1910 – August 23, 1978) was an American painter, art collector, and art historian. In addition to lecturing and writing about art, he served as Chairman of the Special Committee for White House Paintings under both President Kennedy and President Johnson. Fosburgh and his wife, Mary ("Minnie") Cushing, were prominent art collectors in New York City.

James W. Fosburgh
Whitney with First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy at the White House, 1961
Born(1910-08-01)August 1, 1910
New York, US
DiedAugust 23, 1978(1978-08-23) (aged 68)
New York, US
EducationYale University
Spouse
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(m. 1953)​

Early life

James Whitney Fosburgh was born in New York on August 1, 1910. He was the son of James Boies Alleyne Fosburgh (1879–1926) and Leila Whitney (d. 1913).[1] After his mother's death in 1913, his father married his mother's younger sister, Eleanor Newton Whitney (1887–1930).[2] His father, who was from Buffalo, New York, was also a Yale graduate.[3][4][5]

He graduated from Yale University in 1933, and afterwards completed a Master's thesis on the journals of Thomas Sully, receiving his M.A. from Yale University in 1935.[6] In 1955, he joined the governing board of the Yale Art Gallery, later the Yale University Art Gallery.

Career

During World War II, Fosburgh enlisted as a glider pilot and served with the 101st Airborne Division.[7]

He later returned to New York and worked at The Frick Collection, first as a docent, from October 1935-June 1938, and later as lecturer, from October 1947-May 1954.[8] During this time, he began to exhibit his artwork throughout the city. In the 1950s and 1960s, he participated in group and solo shows at Durlacher Bros. Gallery, Kennedy Galleries, and Coe Kerr Galleries.

White House

Throughout the Kennedy administration, First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy endeavored to restore the interiors of the White House and bring historical character to the space. Soon after her husband took office, Kennedy formed the Fine Arts Committee for the White House, naming Henry F. du Pont Chairman and serving herself as Honorary Chairman.

In November 1961, Jacqueline Kennedy and Henry F. du Pont established a Special Committee for White House Paintings, part of the Fine Arts Committee for the White House, and appointed Fosburgh head of the new group. Until that point, the expertise and interests of Fine Arts Committee members had been largely focused on antique furnishings, not pictures.[9] Fosburgh's Committee was charged with expanding the White House collection of paintings, including portraits, landscapes, and still lifes, and replacing "certain non-historic paintings of past Presidents with those which were actually painted from life."[10] Within two years, the Special Committee had acquired over 150 new works for the collection.[11]

Jacqueline Kennedy retained for her own collection, Fosburgh's posthumous portrait of John F. Kennedy, which was featured on the November 5, 1965 cover of LIFE Magazine. Other works by Fosburgh are in the collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, and The Frick Collection.[12]

Personal life

In 1953, Fosburgh married Mary ("Minnie") Cushing (1906–1978), one of the Cushing sisters, who had recently divorced Vincent Astor after thirteen years of marriage. Together, Fosburgh and Mary Cushing developed a significant collection of art, primarily comprising American and European paintings from the 18th and 19th centuries.[12]

Notes
  1. Times, Special To The New York (3 October 1909). "MISS LEILA WHITNEY WEDS.; Daughter of Alfred R. Whitney the Bride of James B.A. Fosburgh". The New York Times. Retrieved 30 January 2017.
  2. Leskovitz, Frank J. (June 20, 2016). Pittsfield's Fosburgh Murder Mystery: Scandal in the Berkshires. Arcadia Publishing. ISBN 9781625856364. Retrieved 29 March 2017.
  3. Yale University (1900). Catalogue of Yale University. New Haven: The Tuttle, Morehouse & Taylor Co. Retrieved 29 March 2017.
  4. University, Yale (1898). Catalogue of the Officers and Graduates of Yale University. The University. Retrieved 29 March 2017.
  5. "JAMES FOSBURGH TELLS HIS STORY | Effort of State in Murder Trial to Make Him Help Convict His Brother. | MAKES A GOOD WITNESS | Says Nothing That Would Lead to Conviction of the Man Accused | FLAWS IN PROSECUTION". The Chicago Tribune. July 23, 1901. Retrieved 29 March 2017.
  6. , Fosburgh, James W. (1935). A Journal of Thomas Sully. Yale University, New Haven.
  7. , Russell, John. "James W. Fosburgh, 67 Painter, Collector and Art Adviser, Is Dead." The New York Times (April 25, 1978): 40.
  8. , Frick Collection Administration Records. The Frick Collection/Frick Art Reference Library Archives.
  9. Hunter, Marjorie. "Mrs. Kennedy Leads Hunt for Art to Grace White House." The New York Times (November 26, 1961): 78.
  10. Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy Onassis Personal Papers. Textual Materials. Pamela Turnure Files. Subject files: White House: Special Committee for White House Paintings: [General]. JBKOPP-SF036-009. John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum.
  11. New York, Metropolitan Museum of Art. Jacqueline Kennedy: The White House Years—Selections from the John F. Kennedy Library and Museum [exh.]. Comp. Hamish Bowles. May 1 – July 29, 2001, p.7.
  12. "Mary Fosburgh, 72; One of Cushing Sisters And a Leader in Arts". The New York Times. 6 November 1978. Retrieved 13 September 2017.
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