Fine Art Connoisseur joins the chorus of praise – and heartache – as the art world says goodbye to visionary scholar Gerald Ackerman.
Dr. Gerald Ackerman (1928-2016), widely known throughout academia – and beyond – as a preeminent scholar, has passed away. Born in Alameda, California, in 1928, Dr. Ackerman is often credited with having spearheaded a revival of interest in French academic painter Jean-Léon Gérôme (1824-1904).
Dr. Ackerman’s passing has sent ripples through the art world, with Fine Art Connoisseur’s own B. Eric Rhoads and Peter Trippi offering their thoughts – and memories:
“Gérôme would be virtually unknown today had it not been for Gerald Ackerman. He was one of the finest art historians of our time and his influence will be felt for generations.”
– B. Eric Rhoads, Publisher, FIne Art Connoisseur.
“I am deeply saddened by the passing of Gerald Ackerman, who made a huge contribution to the field of art history by refocusing attention on an array of 19th-century academic artists and artworks. In 2003-2004, my colleagues and I at the Dahesh Museum of Art (New York) were honored to work with him and the artist Graydon Parrish on the exhibition and publication highlighting the drawing curriculum of Charles Bargue; happily, the book has lived on to become a bestselling touchstone for a new generation of artists, a phenomenon that rightly made Jerry very proud. And I recall fondly how pleased he was during the festivities surrounding the opening of the Jean-Léon Gérôme exhibition at the Getty Museum in 2010; that superb presentation marked the culmination of his decades-long effort to return this French master to the spotlight he deserves, and now holds again.”
-Peter Trippi, Editor-in-Chief, Fine Art Connoisseur.
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