Kahn Lectures
Encyclopedia
The Kahn Lectures were series of lectures that took place from 1929 to 1931 at the Department of Art and Archaeology of Princeton University
, sponsored by the New York banker Otto Hermann Kahn
(1867–1934). Kahn had funded visits by European scholars to Princeton since 1925, and the new lectures were announced as a continuation of the earlier ones.
In 1923, shortly after Otto Kahn's son had entered Princeton, the banker was approached by the art historian Charles Rufus Morey
, described by architectural historian Neil Levine as the prime mover of the Department of Art and Archaeology. Kahn agreed in 1924 to donate $1,500 a year for two years to finance extended visits by European scholars to the university. This was later extended for a third year.
The first of these scholars was the Russian classical scholar Michael Rostovtzeff
, who had already settled in the United States in 1918, after the Russian revolution. His lectures were later published as The Animal Style in South Russia and China. The second was the French byzantinist Gabriel Millet, who held the chair for Æsthetics and Art History at the Collège de France
. The third was the British archaeologist and hittitologist
John Garstang
.
After Kahn had become a member of the Visiting Committee of the Department in 1927, he promised to continue supporting lectures there. These were to begin in 1928/29 and would run for five years. The donation was reported on the front page of the New York Times, which quoted Professor Morey's statement that the money would be used for the "continuation of the special lectures in art, archaeology, architecture and criticism which were initiated two years ago with Mr. Kahn's help". The report described the intended plan for "a course of eight lectures on different subjects given each year by a distinguished authority in his own field, while special emphasis will be placed on the selection of subjects not included in the Princeton curriculum."
After considering Arthur Pillans Laurie, Eugénie Sellers Strong
and Herbert Joseph Spinden, the Department settled on the Swedish art historian Johnny Roosval
, professor at Stockholm University, as the first lecturer. Roosval's lectures on Swedish art, described by Levine as "apparently not very exciting", were published in 1932. According to Levine, Roosval had been asked to extend his lectures to the modern architecture of Sweden, an area outside the expertise of the Swedish scholar, who was known for his studies of medieval art.
For the second round of lectures, Morey originally invited the Dutch architect J.J.P. Oud
, "a star in the rising pantheon of younger European architects". Morey had been influenced in this choice by an article on Oud by Henry-Russell Hitchcock
in the magazine The Arts in February 1928. Oud accepted, although he would have preferred to hold his lectures later in the spring than was possible, but ultimately he had to cancel because of illness (one of his frequent periods of depression). After once again considering H. J. Spinden, Baldwin Smith, who was acting chair of the Department during Morey's absence in Europe, invited Frank Lloyd Wright. Wright had recently published a number of pieces on architectural theory, but had little to do at the time, and the recent Wall Street Crash had made it look unlikely that he would get any new commissions for the time being. Despite this, Levine suggests that Wright's reason for accepting the offer was not primarily financial, but rather the "prestige of the venue and the bully pulpit it would afford him". According to the original donation by Kahn, each series was to consist of eight lectures, but Wright proposed that he would instead hold six lectures and arrange an exhibition of his own recent work "illustrating the ideas and principles involved in the ‘course'". According to Levine, Wright's Kahn lectures gave him a new and important experience and even "opened a new career path" for the architect, who continued to lecture extensively at universities and other institutions for the next year. His exhibition toured America in 1930 and Europe for six months in 1931. Wright's lectures were originally published in 1931 in the Princeton monograph series for art and archaeology. They were reprinted in 1987, and a new edition, with an introduction by Harvard professor Neil Levine, was published in 2008. In a contemporary review of the first edition of Wright's lectures, the critic Catherine Bauer described the book as "the very best book on modern architecture that exists".
The next two series of lectures in the series were held in January 1931 by Herbert Joseph Spinden, the expert in pre-Columbian American archaeology who had already been considered twice before, and in the fall of 1931 by Edward Denison Ross
, director of (what was still known as) the School of Oriental Studies
of the University of London
, who talked about Persian art. Neither of these were published. Ross's lectures were described by Baldwin Smith as "rather flat, as the Englishman thought he could chat along pleasantly on most anything to an American audience." For the fifth round of lectures, the Department invited the French architectural historian Marcel Aubert
, but he had to cancel after a scheduling conflict appeared with his lectures at Yale. Morey suggested to Kahn that the remaining funds be given to a student in need. Because of the financial losses Kahn had sustained during the preceding years, he could not renew his gift. Otto Kahn died two years later.
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
, sponsored by the New York banker Otto Hermann Kahn
Otto Hermann Kahn
Otto Hermann Kahn was an investment banker, collector, philanthropist, and patron of the arts.-Life and career:He was born on February 21, 1867, and raised in the city of Mannheim, Germany, to Jewish parents...
(1867–1934). Kahn had funded visits by European scholars to Princeton since 1925, and the new lectures were announced as a continuation of the earlier ones.
Charles Rufus Morey
Charles Rufus Morey was an American art historian and professor and chairman of the Department of Art and Archaeology at Princeton University from 1924 to 1945, best known for his expertise in medieval art and his Index of Christian Art...
, described by architectural historian Neil Levine as the prime mover of the Department of Art and Archaeology. Kahn agreed in 1924 to donate $1,500 a year for two years to finance extended visits by European scholars to the university. This was later extended for a third year.
The first of these scholars was the Russian classical scholar Michael Rostovtzeff
Michael Rostovtzeff
Mikhail Ivanovich Rostovtzeff, or Rostovtsev was one of the 20th century's foremost authorities on ancient Greek, Iranian, and Roman history....
, who had already settled in the United States in 1918, after the Russian revolution. His lectures were later published as The Animal Style in South Russia and China. The second was the French byzantinist Gabriel Millet, who held the chair for Æsthetics and Art History at the Collège de France
Collège de France
The Collège de France is a higher education and research establishment located in Paris, France, in the 5th arrondissement, or Latin Quarter, across the street from the historical campus of La Sorbonne at the intersection of Rue Saint-Jacques and Rue des Écoles...
. The third was the British archaeologist and hittitologist
Hittites
The Hittites were a Bronze Age people of Anatolia.They established a kingdom centered at Hattusa in north-central Anatolia c. the 18th century BC. The Hittite empire reached its height c...
John Garstang
John Garstang
John Garstang was a British archaeologist of the ancient Near East, especially Anatolia and the southern Levant....
.
After Kahn had become a member of the Visiting Committee of the Department in 1927, he promised to continue supporting lectures there. These were to begin in 1928/29 and would run for five years. The donation was reported on the front page of the New York Times, which quoted Professor Morey's statement that the money would be used for the "continuation of the special lectures in art, archaeology, architecture and criticism which were initiated two years ago with Mr. Kahn's help". The report described the intended plan for "a course of eight lectures on different subjects given each year by a distinguished authority in his own field, while special emphasis will be placed on the selection of subjects not included in the Princeton curriculum."
After considering Arthur Pillans Laurie, Eugénie Sellers Strong
Eugenie Sellers Strong
Eugenie Strong was a British art historian, and Assistant Director of the British School at Rome from 1905-1925. Educated at Girton College, Cambridge, she became the first female student admitted to the British School at Athens in 1890, and continued art historical studies in Germany under...
and Herbert Joseph Spinden, the Department settled on the Swedish art historian Johnny Roosval
Johnny Roosval
John August Emanuel Roosval was a Swedish art historian.Roosval was born in a bourgeois family in Kalmar, but grew up in Stockholm from the age of five and went to school there...
, professor at Stockholm University, as the first lecturer. Roosval's lectures on Swedish art, described by Levine as "apparently not very exciting", were published in 1932. According to Levine, Roosval had been asked to extend his lectures to the modern architecture of Sweden, an area outside the expertise of the Swedish scholar, who was known for his studies of medieval art.
Jacobus Oud
Jacobus Johannes Pieter Oud, commonly called J. J. P. Oud was a Dutch architect. His fame began as a follower of the De Stijl movement....
, "a star in the rising pantheon of younger European architects". Morey had been influenced in this choice by an article on Oud by Henry-Russell Hitchcock
Henry-Russell Hitchcock
Henry-Russell Hitchcock was the leading American architectural historian of his generation. A long-time professor at Smith College and New York University, he is best known for writings that helped to define Modern architecture.-Biography:...
in the magazine The Arts in February 1928. Oud accepted, although he would have preferred to hold his lectures later in the spring than was possible, but ultimately he had to cancel because of illness (one of his frequent periods of depression). After once again considering H. J. Spinden, Baldwin Smith, who was acting chair of the Department during Morey's absence in Europe, invited Frank Lloyd Wright. Wright had recently published a number of pieces on architectural theory, but had little to do at the time, and the recent Wall Street Crash had made it look unlikely that he would get any new commissions for the time being. Despite this, Levine suggests that Wright's reason for accepting the offer was not primarily financial, but rather the "prestige of the venue and the bully pulpit it would afford him". According to the original donation by Kahn, each series was to consist of eight lectures, but Wright proposed that he would instead hold six lectures and arrange an exhibition of his own recent work "illustrating the ideas and principles involved in the ‘course'". According to Levine, Wright's Kahn lectures gave him a new and important experience and even "opened a new career path" for the architect, who continued to lecture extensively at universities and other institutions for the next year. His exhibition toured America in 1930 and Europe for six months in 1931. Wright's lectures were originally published in 1931 in the Princeton monograph series for art and archaeology. They were reprinted in 1987, and a new edition, with an introduction by Harvard professor Neil Levine, was published in 2008. In a contemporary review of the first edition of Wright's lectures, the critic Catherine Bauer described the book as "the very best book on modern architecture that exists".
The next two series of lectures in the series were held in January 1931 by Herbert Joseph Spinden, the expert in pre-Columbian American archaeology who had already been considered twice before, and in the fall of 1931 by Edward Denison Ross
Edward Denison Ross
Sir Edward Denison Ross was an Orientalist and one of the world's foremost linguists, specializing in languages of the Far East. He could read 49 languages, and speak 30 of them. He was director of the British Information Bureau for the Near East. Along with Eileen Power, he wrote and edited a...
, director of (what was still known as) the School of Oriental Studies
School of Oriental and African Studies
The School of Oriental and African Studies is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and a constituent college of the University of London...
of the University of London
University of London
-20th century:Shortly after 6 Burlington Gardens was vacated, the University went through a period of rapid expansion. Bedford College, Royal Holloway and the London School of Economics all joined in 1900, Regent's Park College, which had affiliated in 1841 became an official divinity school of the...
, who talked about Persian art. Neither of these were published. Ross's lectures were described by Baldwin Smith as "rather flat, as the Englishman thought he could chat along pleasantly on most anything to an American audience." For the fifth round of lectures, the Department invited the French architectural historian Marcel Aubert
Marcel Aubert
-Life:Marcel Aubert was the son of an architect who died when he was only seven years old. Following his studies at the Lycée Condorcet, he entered the École Nationale des Chartes where he wrote a thesis on the Cathedral of Senlis in 1907 and won the goodwill of his professor Robert de Lasteyrie.He...
, but he had to cancel after a scheduling conflict appeared with his lectures at Yale. Morey suggested to Kahn that the remaining funds be given to a student in need. Because of the financial losses Kahn had sustained during the preceding years, he could not renew his gift. Otto Kahn died two years later.
Summary list of Kahn lecturers
- Johnny RoosvalJohnny RoosvalJohn August Emanuel Roosval was a Swedish art historian.Roosval was born in a bourgeois family in Kalmar, but grew up in Stockholm from the age of five and went to school there...
on Swedish art, Spring 1929 - Frank Lloyd WrightFrank Lloyd WrightFrank Lloyd Wright was an American architect, interior designer, writer and educator, who designed more than 1,000 structures and completed 500 works. Wright believed in designing structures which were in harmony with humanity and its environment, a philosophy he called organic architecture...
on Modern architecture, 1930 - Herbert Joseph Spinden on Central American Art and Archaeology, January 1931
- Edward Denison RossEdward Denison RossSir Edward Denison Ross was an Orientalist and one of the world's foremost linguists, specializing in languages of the Far East. He could read 49 languages, and speak 30 of them. He was director of the British Information Bureau for the Near East. Along with Eileen Power, he wrote and edited a...
on Persian art, Fall 1931 - Marcel AubertMarcel Aubert-Life:Marcel Aubert was the son of an architect who died when he was only seven years old. Following his studies at the Lycée Condorcet, he entered the École Nationale des Chartes where he wrote a thesis on the Cathedral of Senlis in 1907 and won the goodwill of his professor Robert de Lasteyrie.He...
was booked for 1932, but had to cancel