Charles Loeser

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Charles Loeser

Charles Alexander Loeser (born January 11, 1864 in New York City , † March 15, 1928 in New York) was an American art collector and art historian with German roots. He bequeathed a large part of his art collection to state institutions in the USA and the city of Florence .

Life

He was born as the son of the German-Jewish immigrant and successful department store owner Frederick (or Friedrich) Loeser. After studying art history from 1882 to 1886 at Harvard University in Boston, he added a two-year philosophy course. He also attended the seminars of philosophy professors William James and Josiah Royce . He began collecting books and pictures while still a student. In contrast to the general custom among Jewish immigrants, Loeser never denied his Jewish denomination. In 1888 he moved to his father's homeland, where he married the German pianist Olga Lebert Kaufmann. He settled with her in Florence between 1888 and 1890 , where he also spent the rest of his life.

He worked u. a. in the Gabinetto Disegni e Stampe degli Uffizi , a department for drawings and prints within the Uffizi Art Museum , and in the Albertina in Vienna to study art collections. In addition, he ran a small art business, but was not dependent on its income. From 1915 he began collecting works of art of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance in his house, the Villa Torri di Gattaia , as was customary among English-speaking immigrants in Florence. He studied his works and researched them in order to be able to make the correct assignment. By his death in 1928, the number of exhibits increased to around 1,000, including paintings, sculptures, drawings, prints, coins and applied arts . Some of the paintings by Cézanne were among the few contemporary works . Loeser is considered one of the first to appreciate Cézanne.

Loeser kept in touch despite the great distance to his former companions and even visited his old home twice. During his second stay in 1928 he died of a lung infection. The remains were transferred to Florence. A monument to him was erected in the Cimitero Evangelico agli Allori cemetery , the work of the sculptor Antonio Maraini. The artist used his sculpture Santa Cecilia as a template .

Two years before his death, Loeser wrote his will, the so-called "Loeser Legacy". All prints and drawings - 262 in number - went to the Fogg Art Museum at Harvard University. The American President was allowed to choose eight Cézannes to decorate rooms in the White House . A list contained over 30 works of art and antique furniture that would become the property of the city of Florence and should be presented to the public in the Palazzo Vecchio . Due to construction work, the exhibition did not open its doors until 1934. The donation has been administered in the form of a foundation ( Assoziazione Charles Loeser ) since 2004 . The aim is to maintain the value and research the exhibits. In 2009 the financial support was extended to research into those works of art that were resold by the bereaved. Unfortunately, it has not yet been possible to create a complete list of the collection because the relevant information is missing due to the scattering.

Loeser Collection (small selection)

Web links

Commons : Sammlung Loeser  - collection of images, videos and audio files
Commons : Charles Loeser  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Main source

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e f Alice Parri: Two Harvard Friends: Charles Loeser and George Santayana (English)
  2. ↑ Santa Cecilia
  3. ↑ Musei Civici Fiorentini (English), [1] (Italian)
  4. ↑ a b c The Associazione Charles Loeser ( Memento of the original dated November 4, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Page 2, accessible via the link below @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.associazionecharlesloeser.it
  5. ↑ Associazione Charles Loeser ( Memento of the original from November 4, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (English) @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.associazionecharlesloeser.it
personal data
SURNAME Loeser, Charles
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Loeser, Charles Alexander (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American art collector and art historian with German roots
DATE OF BIRTH January 11, 1864
PLACE OF BIRTH New York City
DATE OF DEATH March 15, 1928
Place of death New York City