“The gentleman’s bequest,” by Brett Erickson

“The gentleman’s bequest,” by Brett Erickson

There was a moment in American cultural history when a single individual’s sense of beauty became a civic responsibility. Personal taste, quietly yet firmly expressed through private collections, once shaped public institutions. Today, when committees rather than collectors primarily determine museum acquisitions, it’s worth reflecting on what has been lost and why it might matter. Henry Clay Frick, J. P. Morgan, and Henry E. Huntington were col…