Existing comment:
Dr. Denman Waldo Ross 1853–1935
For much of his life, Denman Ross pursued a globetrotting quest for excellence in design. His travels took him to Central and South America, Egypt, China, Japan, India, Cambodia, Persia, and elsewhere. In the process, he became an early collector of art that was then little known in the United States. Ross's theories of art and design influenced a generation of students at Harvard University, where he taught for over twenty-five years. He reached a wider audience through publications such as A Theory of Pure Design (1907), which contributed to the predominance of abstract formal elements in modern art and architecture.
Convinced that great art should be publicly accessible, Ross donated roughly 11,000 objects from his collection to the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. To honor his contributions, the Museum commissioned this portrait. In 2003, the Denman Waldo Ross Society was established to recognize other important supporters of the Museum.
Charcoal on paper, 1917
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; gift of the Committee on the Museum
This is the National Portrait Gallery sign in the exhibit. |