Nicole Smith Professor Hall AH520 Museum Studies December 8, 2009 The Collector and the Collected: The

Issues and Advantages of Personal Identity in the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum For over a hundred years, the Fenway neighborhood of Boston Massachusetts has been the home of the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum and its collection of over 2,500 works of fine and decorative arts. Since its opening in 1903, the museum has held a reputation of being remarkable in the character of both its collection its collector. Isabella Gardners vision for the construction, arrangement and function of her museum is one that has survived its creator with vigor. To this day, the spirit and charm of this intimate display space and the spectacle and assortment of the art objects it contains has remained almost identical to the original plans set forth by Mrs. Gardner. The Gardner Museum functions as both a fixed monument, that is, a testament to the wishes of its founder, and simultaneously strives to actively fulfill its calling to be an institute of public benefit. Indeed, it is this strong connection to the charming, yet eccentric, personality of its benefactor that the museum has for so long been of interest. Yet this tie can be seen as both advantages as well as constraining. While working to maintain the image of its foundations, the Gardner is still challenged to keep up with the needs and standards of the

Smith 2 modern museum institution.1 Some of the current issues of the Gardner Museum are tied to this very question of identity, allegiance and responsibility. An ambiguity of identity can lead to some very difficult situations for institutions that are designed for and called to the responsibilities of their representations. Museums are especially vulnerable to these conflicts of interest and duties, whether they are the consequences of a divergence between donors and curators, the tension between the call for educational and entertainment needs, or even the continuous contests for monetary funds and authority. The Gardner Museum is in a particularly complex struggle. The museum has, for over a century now, successfully respected the decree of Mrs. Gardners will calling for the preservation of her original vision, keeping the displays, layout and building all relatively unchanged since her death. Fortunately, this original character Isabella personally fostered in the creation of her museum serves as one of its strongest attractions for curious museum patrons. Many visitors are drawn in by the history, both fact and legend, of Mrs. Gardner and the museum, which itself acts as a material remain of her artistic spirit. While this intimate connection is one of the most intriguing aspects of the Gardner museum, it is not to say that this is the museums solitary advantageous selling point, for what would an art museum be without the art objects it contains? The outstanding permanent collection of the Gardner includes world-renowned master paintings by Rembrandt, Titian, Raphael and Manet, Michelangelo and Sargent and a plethora of sculptures, manuscripts, furniture and decorative art objects from around the world. Even visitors who are unaware of the history behind the collector find Beam, Alex. Testing Mrs. Gardner's Will. Boston Globe. 27 Jan. 2009. Web. 20 Nov. 2009. <http://www.boston.com/lifestyle/articles/2009/01/27/testing_mrs_gardners_will/>
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Smith 3 themselves, nonetheless, impressed (perhaps even overwhelmed) by the rich treasures that line the walls, shelves, ceilings and architecture of the building. These two points of interest, the collection and the collector, function in relationship that is both cooperative and competitive. It is this complicated relationship that is at the crux of the museums successes as well as its challenges. Throughout her life, Isabella Stewart Gardner acted as a self-appointed guardian of culture who exercised her lifes calling in her roles as a philanthropist and as a collector and patron of the fine arts. Born in 1840 to David and Adelia Stewart, Isabella was educated in private institutions in New York and Paris. Even at a young age, Isabella already demonstrated a strong appreciation for the arts and a philanthropic nature, announcing at the age of sixteen that she would someday like to have a home like the Museo Poldi-Pezzoli in Milan, filled with beautiful pictures and objects of art, for people to come and enjoy.2 On April 10, 1860 Isabella Stewart was married in New York to Jack Gardner, the older brother of one of her close schoolmates. The couple moved to Boston as residents of the Back Bay community. After the death of her only son in 1865, Isabella was overcome by a period of depression of illness that lasted over two years. Her doctor suggested that she and her husband take some leisure time to travel in the hopes that the rest and recreation would revive Mrs. Gardners heath and spirit. It was during their second trip abroad in 1874 that the Gardners pursuit of collecting began to transform into something more than souvenir consumerism, becoming nothing less than a passion. After receiving a generous inheritance from her father in 1891 Mrs.

Higonnet, Anne. Private Museums, Public Leadership: Isabella Stewart Gardner and the Art of Cultural Authority. Cultural Leadership in America: Art Matronage and Patronage. Fenway Court Vol. XXVII, Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum: 1997.

Smith 4 Gardner began her more serious collecting under the guidance of her artistic advisor and good friend Bernard Berenson. By the 1880s the couple traveled frequently across Europe, Asia and America as Mrs. Gardner took in the sights and pleasures of the world expanding her knowledge fine art and cultures. As her collection continued to grow, the Gardners soon realized that their home at 152 Beacon Street would no longer serve as an efficient housing for the large quantity of artworks. It was not until after her husbands death in 1898, however, that Isabella set the plans and construction of her very own Fenway Court into motion.3 The personality of Fenway Court was in fact that of its creator. Her curious reputation for being unconventional in every sense both shocked and captivated her peers, as Mrs. Gardner was, indeed, an entertainer at heart. Her eccentricities are reflected in the range and diversity of her collection and in the highly personal aesthetics of her display designs.4 For Isabella, Fenway Court was in no way designed as a museum, as she disliked the cold, mausoleum-like spaces of conventional museum settings.5 Her vision for her Court was a place for entertainment, enrichment, discussion and scholarship enveloped in a warm, inviting and intimate atmosphere. It is this personal vision of Mrs. Gardners that initially shaped the creation of the museum, one which, to this day, fashions the identity of the institution. The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum has been a historic landmark of the Fenway area since its opening on New Years Day 1903. Construction of the museum

Isabella Stewart Gardner: Founders Bio. Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. Museum Press Kit, 2009. Accessed 17 Nov. 2009. <http://www.gardnermuseum.org/information/press_news.asp> 4 Higonnet, pp. 80. 5 The Permanetnt Collection and Scholarly Exhibitions. Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. Museum Press Kit, 2009. Accessed 17 Nov. 2009. <http://www.gardnermuseum.org/information/press_news.asp>

Smith 5 began in June 1899, a year after the sudden death of her husband, Jack Gardner. The building was originally designed by architect Willard T. Sears who employed a gothic style aimed to evoke the appearance of the Palazzo Barbaro of Venice, Italy. This beautiful four-story palace contains fourteen galleries on three floors, with an interior courtyard garden enclosed by a glass ceiling. This fanciful recreation of the 15th century Venetian style includes direct quotations of the loggia corridors and pointed arch colonnades of the Palazzo Barbaro and even goes so far as to work actual imported architectural fragments from European Gothic and Renaissance structures into the museum design. Mrs. Gardners attraction to the European aesthetic was not usual for her time, as the mid 19th century saw a rise in wealthy American spectatorship and travels in Italy. Venice was a prime center for her collection acquisitions over the years as she and her husband spent several weeks there every other year.6 The museum is, in its entirety, the very product of Mrs. Gardners vibrant imagination and individual tastes from top to bottom and it is this very foundation that current museum administrators and supporters work everyday to preserve. This preservation of Mrs. Gardners original museum design is central to the identity and responsibilities of the museum. Before her death in 1924, Isabella penned a 10-page will that explicitly calls for the perpetual continuation of the museum experience she designed for her visitors. Her will prohibits the tampering of any arrangements or displays within the museum, and forbids the removal or addition of any objects from the collection. Her will also stipulates that in the event of breach of this will, the museum, in

Matthews, Rosemary. Collectors and Why They Collect: Isabella Stewart Gardner and her Museum of Art. Journal of the History of Collections, Vol. 21, No. 2 (2009). Oxford University Press, pp. 183-189.

Smith 6 its entirety is to be bequeathed to Harvard University and the all objects are to be sold at auction. This extreme demand can be striking to some, as it seems that Mrs. Gardner would rather her lifes work be completely deconstructed than altered in any way.7 The severity of her will is a lasting reflection of the passion of her nature during her lifetime. As with most collections, Mrs. Gardners relationship with the art objects and spaces she assembled runs in a much deeper and intimate course than simply serving selfgratification or even the enjoyment of the public. Rosemary Matthews writes in a 2009 Journal of the History of Collections, The purchase of her first Old Master [painting] was influenced by the loss of her son, and the creation of her museum inextricably linked to the death of her husband. 8 She goes on to speculate that Mrs. Gardner, like many collectors, saw her collection as an extension of herself, and as the stringency her will suggests, will act as a perpetual and immortal identity. The unorthodox and highly individual manner of the museum does not only reflect the tastes and personality of its founder, but in fact reflects her life in both struggles and triumphs. [THE IDENTITY] After taking the time to acknowledge the Gardner collection as both a personal extension of the self as well as a philanthropic gesture towards the enrichment of the public, it is easy to see why the museum has for years stood by its foundations. In 19th century America, most art museum shared the basic universal goal of providing inspiration and instruction for American artists and designers, as well as

Higonnet, Anne. Private Museums, Public Leadership: Isabella Stewart Gardner and the Art of Cultural Authority. Cultural Leadership in America: Art Matronage and Patronage. Fenway Court Vol. XXVII, Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum: 1997. 8 Matthews, pp. 183.

Smith 7 education and enjoyment for the general public.9 This purpose was the driving force of Mrs. Gardners establishment as it operated as vibrant venue for artists, musicians and scholars alike. To tamper with, or alter this vision at all, would indeed seem a personal crime against wishes of Mrs. Gardner, yet the museum must take into account the progress of time and standards. During Isabellas lifetime only about 1000 people visited the museum each year. Presently, that number has now increased to over 200,000 visitors.10 Towards the end of the 20th century, the museum began to feel the pressure When addressing the question of identity, particularly in the case of Mrs. Gardners museum, it is inevitable that issues of legal as well as moral responsibilities will arise. Philanthropy versus self-gratification Fenway Court, as the Museum was called at its inception, is the only private art collection in which the building, collection and installations are the creation of one individual. The unconventional nature and order of the gallery displays provides a reflection of her extraoridinary life.11 Unlike other art museums, the ISGM sometimes referred to as Fenway Court exhibition reflects the collectors personal aesthetic tastes: a John Singer Sargent watercolor hanging above a decorative vase from China, a fifteenth-century tapestry situated next to Chinese sculpture from the eleventh-century. The museum is in fact an endeavor that goes beyond Isabellas pastime as a collector. Isabella undoubtedly understood the power her museum held to act as very much more than the sun of its parts, that is its ability to function, to

Gardner, Albert Teneyck. Museum in Motion. The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, New Series, Vol. 24, No. 1 (Summer, 1965). pp. 12-24. 10 Miliard, Mike. Gardner Growing Pains: Her Will Be Done. The Boston Phoenix. 19 Dec. 2007. Accessed 19 Nov. 2009. < http://thephoenix.com/boston/Arts/53241-Gardnergrowing-pains/> 11 Matthews, pp. 183.

Smith 8 exercise authority, once it becomes something else besides a collection of art objects. 12 [ISSUES] Although the ISGM website (www.gardnermuseum.org) contains detailed information (including title, date of creation, artist, artists country of birth, artist life span, medium, dimensions, and provenance/purchase information), on some collection elements can be located on no information accompanies the collection elements on the walls in the galleries.13 If visitors ask, security guards can provide information on individual pieces, as they seem to have received training on the collection. Furthermore, there are laminated 8 x 11 overviews of each gallery which provide basic information on each piece. For many years, it was Gardners decree and lingering legacy over the Museum which immobilized administrators: programs were infrequently offered and the galleries were falling into disrepair. . In some ways, the hands of the ISGM administrators are tied: they cannot move the items nor create new exhibitions with the collection. [SOLUTIONS] necessary investments in the museums long-term future were considered. Hawley promptly began investing in conservation spending $8 million on an HVAC system to address the condensation that frequently formed in the galleries (Storrs) . In an interview in 2004, Hawley discusses her vision for the ISGM in the 21st Century: I hope the Gardner will be a center for creativity, a place where you see a great collection carefully conserved. Toward that end, the Massachusetts Court of Appeals ruled in April 2009 that a museum expansion was a reasonable deviation from Gardners will. A new building behind the museum will house a new conservation lab, in addition to performance hall, apartments for artists in residence, as well as more spacious administrative offices, a cafe, and gift shop. Following a heist in 1990, in which two men dressed as Boston police officers, entered the museum after hours and walked away with over $500 million in art, museum administrators have been forced to breathe new life into the space. The ISGM only earnestly approached the issue of conservation in the 1990s. The art heist of 1990 seemed to lift the constraint of Gardners legacy and force the museum administrators to rethink some of the assumptions under which the museum had formerly operated. The mid 1990s saw many large scale scholarly and artistic restoration projects including a complete recatalogue of the museums collections and the publication of new written gallery guides for the public.14

Higonnet, Anne. Private Museums, Public Leadership: Isabella Stewart Gardner and the Art of Cultural Authority. Cultural Leadership in America: Art Matronage and Patronage. Fenway Court Vol. XXVII, Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum: 1997. The following is an example of the information available online: Portrait of Josphine Gaujelin, 1867; Edgar Degas, French, 1834-1917; Oil on canvas, 61.2 x 45.7 cm; Purchased in 1904 from Eugene Glaenzer and Co., New York. 14 Goldfarb, Hillard. The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum: A Companion Guide and History. Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Yale University: 1995.
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Smith 9 The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum is, without a doubt, a museum in the midst of a critical identity and allegiance struggle. Because of it unique nature, the museum is faced with the challenge of competing as an effective institution of public art services while simultaneously trying to maintain the image of its founder, resulting in complex conflict of priorities and responsibilities. While these various bodies of responsibility can prove contradictory in some cases, they do not at all times stand on opposing sides. Sparked by the unfortunate heist of 1990, the museum has undergone a remarkable revitalization moving towards the resurrection of the original spirit of the Fenway Court. Its academic and artistic programs in music and historic and contemporary fine arts have recreated the same communal atmosphere Mrs. Gardner herself sought to foster. Today, the museum stands as a beaming example of the renaissance of a legacy. As the coming years have promised even more substantial regeneration, including the proposed expansion, it appears that Mrs. Gardners dream has not yet lost its flame. It is the very same dream that has for over a hundred years carried the identity and spirit of the Gardner Museum. [CITATIONS] Isabella Stewart Gardner had the words cest mon plaisir carved into the brickwork above the front door of her museum as a statement of her intention in forming her collection.15 The collections (at the MET), too, are always changing - growing, being refined and culled over to eliminate lesser works and substitute more important examplesthe basic purpose of most American art museums was to provide inspiration and instruction for American artists and designers, as well as education and enjoyment for the general public.16 Uniquely and personally arranged by Isabella Stewart Gardner to fire the imagination of all who visit, the museum also presents contemporary and historic exhibitions, Americas oldest museum music program, visiting Artists-in-Residence, and innovative school and
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Matthews pp. 183.

Smith 10 community partnerships that provide ongoing inspiration. The proposed project will help to preserve, protect, and enhance the historic integrity of the Museums most significant historic and cultural resources while providing muchneeded space for visitor services, administrative needs, and programming. The new space will include an exhibition gallery, a performance hall, orientation space, education classrooms, a caf, gift shop, greenhouses, offices and conservation labs.17

Bibliography

Deely, Cathy. Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum and the Renzo Piano Building Workshop Announce the Selection of CBT/Childs Bertman Tseckares Inc. as the Local Architect for the Museums New Building Project. Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. 20 Nov. 2006. Accessed 11 Nov. 2009. <http://www.gardnermuseum.org/press_releases/cbt_announcement.pdf>

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Smith 11 Beam, Alex. Testing Mrs. Gardner's Will. Boston Globe. 27 Jan. 2009. Accessed 20 Nov. 2009. <http://www.boston.com/lifestyle/articles/2009/01/27/> Deely, Cathy. Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum and the Renzo Piano Building Workshop Announce the Selection of CBT/Childs Bertman Tseckares Inc. as the Local Architect for the Museums New Building Project. Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. 20 Nov. 2006. Accessed 11 Nov. 2009. <http://www.gardnermuseum.org/press_releases/cbt_announcement.pdf> Gardner, Albert Teneyck. Museum in Motion. The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, New Series, Vol. 24, No. 1 (Summer, 1965). pp. 12-24. Goldfarb, Hillard. The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum: A Companion Guide and History. Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Yale University: 1995. Higonnet, Anne. Private Museums, Public Leadership: Isabella Stewart Gardner and the Art of Cultural Authority. Cultural Leadership in America: Art Matronage and Patronage. Fenway Court Vol. XXVII, Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum: 1997. Matthews, Rosemary. Collectors and Why They Collect: Isabella Stewart Gardner and her Museum of Art. Journal of the History of Collections, Vol. 21, No. 2 (2009). Oxford University Press, pp. 183-189. Miliard, Mike. Gardner Growing Pains: Her Will Be Done. The Boston Phoenix. 19 Dec. 2007. Accessed 19 Nov. 2009. < http://thephoenix.com/boston/Arts/53241 Gardner-growing-pains/>