Richard Ettinghausen
Encyclopedia
Richard Ettinghausen was a historian of Islamic art
and chief curator
of the Freer Gallery.
from the University of Frankfurt in 1931 in Islamic history and art history
.
under the direction of Ernst Kühnel and the collector/archaeologist Friedrich Sarre.
In 1934, due to the rise of the Nazis, he emigrated first to Great Britain
and then to the United States
, where he joined the staff of Arthur Upham Pope at the Institute of Persian Art and Archaeology in New York
. From 1937 to 1938, he taught his first class at the Institute of Fine Art, New York University
. In 1938 he was appointed an associate professor at the University of Michigan
.
In 1944 Ettinghausen left Michigan to join the Freer Gallery. The following year he married the art historian Elisabeth Sgalitzer. He also lectured at Princeton University
. In 1961 he was appointed chief curator of the Freer. During his tenure at the Freer, he built the collection into one of the finest collections on Islamic art in the world.
In 1966 Ettinghausen left the Freer to become Hagop Kevorkian
Professor of Islamic Art at the Institute of Fine Art, New York University
. Together with the Middle East historian R. Bayly Winder he founded the Kevorkian Center the same year at NYU.
Three years later, he also became the Consultative Chairman of the Islamic Department of the Metropolitan Museum of Art
. At the Metropolitan, he was instrumental in installing the galleries to their sensitive arrangement. His text, with Oleg Grabar
, The Art and Architecture of Islam 650-1250 in the Pelican History of Art series, appeared posthumously in 1987.
Both a Jew and an avid Islamicist, his ties to Israel
found expression in his promotion of the establishment of a museum for Islamic art in Jerusalem.
Ettinghausen died of cancer. The library in the Kevorkian Center is named in his honor.
Islamic art
Islamic art encompasses the visual arts produced from the 7th century onwards by people who lived within the territory that was inhabited by or ruled by culturally Islamic populations...
and chief curator
Curator
A curator is a manager or overseer. Traditionally, a curator or keeper of a cultural heritage institution is a content specialist responsible for an institution's collections and involved with the interpretation of heritage material...
of the Freer Gallery.
Education
Ettinghausen received his Ph.D.Ph.D.
A Ph.D. is a Doctor of Philosophy, an academic degree.Ph.D. may also refer to:* Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*Piled Higher and Deeper, a web comic strip*PhD: Phantasy Degree, a Korean comic series* PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
from the University of Frankfurt in 1931 in Islamic history and art history
Art history
Art history has historically been understood as the academic study of objects of art in their historical development and stylistic contexts, i.e. genre, design, format, and style...
.
Career
From 1929 to 1931, he worked on the Islamic collection of the Kaiser Friedrich Museum in BerlinBerlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
under the direction of Ernst Kühnel and the collector/archaeologist Friedrich Sarre.
In 1934, due to the rise of the Nazis, he emigrated first to Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
and then to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, where he joined the staff of Arthur Upham Pope at the Institute of Persian Art and Archaeology in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. From 1937 to 1938, he taught his first class at the Institute of Fine Art, New York University
New York University
New York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...
. In 1938 he was appointed an associate professor at the University of Michigan
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
.
In 1944 Ettinghausen left Michigan to join the Freer Gallery. The following year he married the art historian Elisabeth Sgalitzer. He also lectured at Princeton University
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....
. In 1961 he was appointed chief curator of the Freer. During his tenure at the Freer, he built the collection into one of the finest collections on Islamic art in the world.
In 1966 Ettinghausen left the Freer to become Hagop Kevorkian
Hagop Kevorkian
Hagop Kevorkian was an Armenian-American archeologist, connoisseur of art, collector, originally from Kayseri who graduated from the American Robert College in Istanbul and settled in New York in the late 19th century and helped America acquire a taste for Eastern artifacts.He carried out...
Professor of Islamic Art at the Institute of Fine Art, New York University
New York University
New York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...
. Together with the Middle East historian R. Bayly Winder he founded the Kevorkian Center the same year at NYU.
Three years later, he also became the Consultative Chairman of the Islamic Department of 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...
. At the Metropolitan, he was instrumental in installing the galleries to their sensitive arrangement. His text, with Oleg Grabar
Oleg Grabar
Oleg Grabar was a French-born art historian and archeologist, who spent most of his career in the United States, as a leading figure in the field of Islamic art and architecture.-Academic career:...
, The Art and Architecture of Islam 650-1250 in the Pelican History of Art series, appeared posthumously in 1987.
Both a Jew and an avid Islamicist, his ties to Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
found expression in his promotion of the establishment of a museum for Islamic art in Jerusalem.
Ettinghausen died of cancer. The library in the Kevorkian Center is named in his honor.