Rene d'Harnoncourt
Encyclopedia
Rene d'Harnoncourt was an art curator, and a Director of the Museum of Modern Art
, New York, from 1949 to 1967.
Of Austrian, Czech, and French descent, Count Rene d'Harnoncourt was born in Vienna, the son of Count Hubert d'Harnoncourt and his wife, the former Julie Mittrowsky. Although he showed an interest in art as a child, he received a technical education. After his family suffered severe financial losses, he moved to Paris in 1924, and went to Mexico in 1926. D’Harnoncourt initially eked out a minimal living as a commercial artist, but quickly acquired a reputation for his knowledgeable advice to American antique collectors.
In 1927, d’Harnoncourt went to work for Frederick W. Davis
, who operated one of the most important antiquities and folk art shops in Mexico City. Davis was among the first to collect, display and sell the work of the emerging Mexican artists such as Diego Rivera
, José Clemente Orozco
, and Rufino Tamayo
; others who frequented the shop included Miguel Covarrubias
and Jean Charlot
. D’Harnoncourt assisted in buying and selling antiques and contemporary works and also organized displays and exhibits in the showroom.
In 1929-30 d'Harnoncourt organized an exhibit of Mexican fine and applied arts that was shown at the Metropolitan Museum of Art
in New York and then traveled to other American cities. D’Harnoncourt left Davis’s shop in 1933 and moved to the United States. That year, he married Sarah Carr (1903-2001) and became host of the radio program Art in America. He briefly taught at Sarah Lawrence College
. In 1936, d'Harnoncourt became the general manager of the Indian Arts and Crafts Board (IACB), a New Deal
agency created to revive Native American arts and crafts. To promote Native American craftwork, d'Harnoncourt developed an exhibit of Native American arts and crafts for the 1939 Golden Gate International Exposition
in San Francisco. Its success led to an even larger show at New York’s Museum of Modern Art
, the influential Indian Art of the United States exhibition that opened in January 1941.
D'harnoncourt was appointed to the Museum of Modern Art
in 1944; he proved to be an expert exhibit installer and notable collector. In 1949 he was appointed Director of the Museum, a position he would hold until 1967. He was responsible for a series of significant exhibitions over the course of his tenure as Director, including Lipchitz (1954), Rodin (1963), and Picasso (1967). D'Harnoncourt was also an advisor to Nelson Rockefeller
. He was a tireless advocate of modern art.
D'Harnoncourt retired from the position of Director in 1967. He was killed on Long Island by a drunk driver roughly a year later.
D'Harnoncourt's only child, Anne Julie d'Harnoncourt
(1943-2008), served as Director and eventually CEO of the Philadelphia Museum of Art
from 1982 until her death.
Museum of Modern Art
The Museum of Modern Art is an art museum in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, on 53rd Street, between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It has been important in developing and collecting modernist art, and is often identified as the most influential museum of modern art in the world...
, New York, from 1949 to 1967.
Of Austrian, Czech, and French descent, Count Rene d'Harnoncourt was born in Vienna, the son of Count Hubert d'Harnoncourt and his wife, the former Julie Mittrowsky. Although he showed an interest in art as a child, he received a technical education. After his family suffered severe financial losses, he moved to Paris in 1924, and went to Mexico in 1926. D’Harnoncourt initially eked out a minimal living as a commercial artist, but quickly acquired a reputation for his knowledgeable advice to American antique collectors.
In 1927, d’Harnoncourt went to work for Frederick W. Davis
Frederick W. Davis
Frederick W. Davis operated an antiquities and folk art shop in Mexico City. Davis was an early collector and dealer in pre-Columbian and Mexican folk art and his shop was a place where Mexican Modern artists who were interested in pre-Columbian and folk art, often met.Davis was born and raised...
, who operated one of the most important antiquities and folk art shops in Mexico City. Davis was among the first to collect, display and sell the work of the emerging Mexican artists such as Diego Rivera
Diego Rivera
Diego María de la Concepción Juan Nepomuceno Estanislao de la Rivera y Barrientos Acosta y Rodríguez was a prominent Mexican painter born in Guanajuato, Guanajuato, an active communist, and husband of Frida Kahlo . His large wall works in fresco helped establish the Mexican Mural Movement in...
, José Clemente Orozco
José Clemente Orozco
José Clemente Orozco was a Mexican social realist painter, who specialized in bold murals that established the Mexican Mural Renaissance together with murals by Diego Rivera, David Alfaro Siqueiros, and others...
, and Rufino Tamayo
Rufino Tamayo
Rufino Tamayo was a Mexican painter of Zapotec heritage, born in Oaxaca de Juárez, Mexico. Tamayo was active in the mid-20th century in Mexico and New York, painting figurative abstraction with surrealist influences....
; others who frequented the shop included Miguel Covarrubias
Miguel Covarrubias
José Miguel Covarrubias Duclaud was a Mexican painter and caricaturist, ethnologist and art historian among other interests. In 1924 at the age of 19 he moved to New York City armed with a grant from the Mexican government, tremendous talent, but very little English speaking skill. Luckily,...
and Jean Charlot
Jean Charlot
Louis Henri Jean Charlot was a French painter and illustrator, active in Mexico and the United States. Charlot was born in Paris. His father, Henri, owned an import-export business and was a Russian-born émigré, albeit one who supported the Bolshevik cause. His mother Anna was herself an artist...
. D’Harnoncourt assisted in buying and selling antiques and contemporary works and also organized displays and exhibits in the showroom.
In 1929-30 d'Harnoncourt organized an exhibit of Mexican fine and applied arts that was shown at the Metropolitan Museum of Art
Metropolitan Museum of Art
The Metropolitan Museum of Art is a renowned art museum in New York City. Its permanent collection contains more than two million works, divided into nineteen curatorial departments. The main building, located on the eastern edge of Central Park along Manhattan's Museum Mile, is one of the...
in New York and then traveled to other American cities. D’Harnoncourt left Davis’s shop in 1933 and moved to the United States. That year, he married Sarah Carr (1903-2001) and became host of the radio program Art in America. He briefly taught at Sarah Lawrence College
Sarah Lawrence College
Sarah Lawrence College is a private liberal arts college in the United States, and a leader in progressive education since its founding in 1926. Located just 30 minutes north of Midtown Manhattan in southern Westchester County, New York, in the city of Yonkers, this coeducational college offers...
. In 1936, d'Harnoncourt became the general manager of the Indian Arts and Crafts Board (IACB), a New Deal
New Deal
The New Deal was a series of economic programs implemented in the United States between 1933 and 1936. They were passed by the U.S. Congress during the first term of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. The programs were Roosevelt's responses to the Great Depression, and focused on what historians call...
agency created to revive Native American arts and crafts. To promote Native American craftwork, d'Harnoncourt developed an exhibit of Native American arts and crafts for the 1939 Golden Gate International Exposition
Golden Gate International Exposition
The Golden Gate International Exposition , held at San Francisco, California's Treasure Island, was a World's Fair that celebrated, among other things, the city's two newly-built bridges. The San Francisco – Oakland Bay Bridge was dedicated in 1936 and the Golden Gate Bridge was dedicated in 1937...
in San Francisco. Its success led to an even larger show at New York’s Museum of Modern Art
Museum of Modern Art
The Museum of Modern Art is an art museum in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, on 53rd Street, between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It has been important in developing and collecting modernist art, and is often identified as the most influential museum of modern art in the world...
, the influential Indian Art of the United States exhibition that opened in January 1941.
D'harnoncourt was appointed to the Museum of Modern Art
Museum of Modern Art
The Museum of Modern Art is an art museum in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, on 53rd Street, between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It has been important in developing and collecting modernist art, and is often identified as the most influential museum of modern art in the world...
in 1944; he proved to be an expert exhibit installer and notable collector. In 1949 he was appointed Director of the Museum, a position he would hold until 1967. He was responsible for a series of significant exhibitions over the course of his tenure as Director, including Lipchitz (1954), Rodin (1963), and Picasso (1967). D'Harnoncourt was also an advisor to Nelson Rockefeller
Nelson Rockefeller
Nelson Aldrich Rockefeller was the 41st Vice President of the United States , serving under President Gerald Ford, and the 49th Governor of New York , as well as serving the Roosevelt, Truman and Eisenhower administrations in a variety of positions...
. He was a tireless advocate of modern art.
D'Harnoncourt retired from the position of Director in 1967. He was killed on Long Island by a drunk driver roughly a year later.
D'Harnoncourt's only child, Anne Julie d'Harnoncourt
Anne d'Harnoncourt
Anne d'Harnoncourt was an American museum director and historian of modern art. She was the Director and CEO of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, a post she held from 1982 until her sudden and unexpected death in 2008...
(1943-2008), served as Director and eventually CEO of the Philadelphia Museum of Art
Philadelphia Museum of Art
The Philadelphia Museum of Art is among the largest art museums in the United States. It is located at the west end of the Benjamin Franklin Parkway in Philadelphia's Fairmount Park. The Museum was established in 1876 in conjunction with the Centennial Exposition of the same year...
from 1982 until her death.