Robinson, Duncan, Duncan Robinson papers on Paul Mellon, 1930-2007
- Call Number:
- S018
- Creator:
- Robinson, Duncan
- Title(s):
- Duncan Robinson papers on Paul Mellon
- Date:
- 1930-2007
- Extent:
- .92 linear feet
- Classification:
- Archives and Manuscripts
- Abstract:
- Collection material mostly pertains the life of Paul Mellon and his relationship with Duncan Robinson, with an emphasis on Mellon's personal interests in horse racing and sporting art.
- Provenance:
- Gift of Duncan Robinson, 2021.
- Conditions Governing Access:
- The collection is partially restricted. Please contact the Yale Center for British Art Archives for further information.
- Biographical/Historical:
- Duncan Robinson (June 27, 1943 – December 2, 2022) served as director of the Yale Center for British Art (YCBA) from 1981 to 1995. He was born in Kidsgrove, Stoke-on-Trent, England, and attended Clare College, Cambridge. From 1965 to 1967, Robinson attended Yale University on a Mellon fellowship, earning a master’s in art history. His museum career began in 1970 when he was appointed assistant keeper of paintings and drawings at the Fitzwilliam Museum, part of Cambridge University. He was promoted to keeper in 1976, and remained at the Fitzwilliam until joining the Yale Center for British Art in 1981. Robinson’s tenure as director of the Yale Center for British Art saw the expansion of the collections and the museum’s increased importance as a research hub for British art history. He oversaw major acquisitions such as James McNeill Whistler's Nocturne in Blue and Silver and J. M. W. Turner's Channel Sketchbook, and exhibitions such as the Tate collaboration George Stubbs, 1724–1806 and Richard Parkes Bonington: “On the Pleasure of Painting.” He had a close relationship with Paul Mellon, which helped to expand Mellon’s collecting interests to include twentieth-century British works. Robinson also served as an adjunct professor of art history at Yale during this time. Robinson departed the YCBA in 1995 to become director of the Fitzwilliam Museum, where he remained until retiring in 2007. During his time at the Fitzwilliam, he was named Master of Magdalene College (2002–12), as well as a deputy vice chancellor of Cambridge starting in 2005. Beyond these extensive responsibilities, Robinson actively served on various boards, councils, and cultural heritage organizations, including his time as chairman of the Henry Moore Foundation, trustee of the Royal Collection, and more. He was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in 2008 in recognition of his extensive contributions to the heritage of art. For more information, please see the obituary for Robinson published by the Yale Center for British Art: https://britishart.yale.edu/news-and-press/memoriam-duncan-robinson-cbe-1943-2022 and Paul Mellon (1907–1999) was the son of Pittsburgh financier and former Secretary of the Treasury Andrew W. Mellon. As a young man, Mellon developed a love for British art, literature, and sport, interests that permeated his adult life and philanthropic pursuits. Mellon was a graduate of Yale College (class of 1929) and Cambridge University, where he deepened his knowledge of British literature and interest in equestrian sports. In partnership with his second wife, Rachel Lambert Mellon (1910–2013), Paul Mellon amassed a large collection of rare books and art, much of which was originally displayed at their homes in Antigua, New York, Virginia, and Washington, DC. Paul Mellon’s focused collecting of British art began in the late 1950s. In 1966 he bequeathed his extensive collection of art and rare books to Yale University, along with an endowment that established the Yale Center for British Art, which opened to the public in 1977.
- Scope and Content:
- Collection material mostly pertains to the life of Paul Mellon and his relationship with Duncan Robinson. Included in the collection are publications that focus on Mellon’s interests such as horse racing and sporting art, copies of speeches given by Mellon, obituaries and tributes, and posthumous speeches given by Robinson about Mellon.
- Arrangement:
- Organized into six series: Series 1. Speeches and articles written by Paul Mellon; Series 2. Articles featuring or related to Paul Mellon; Series 3. Photographs; Series 4. Obituaries and memorials; Series 5. Posthumous writings and speeches about Paul Mellon; Series 6. Paul Mellon, [Restricted].
- Subject Terms:
- ArtArt museum directorsCollectors and collectingMemorial servicePhilanthropistsRace horses
- Associated Places:
- United States
- Associated People/Groups:
- Clare College (University of Cambridge)Fitzwilliam MuseumMellon, Paul
- Finding Aid Title:
- Duncan Robinson papers on Paul Mellon
- Archival Object:
- https://archives.yale.edu/repositories/3/resources/13080
- Metadata Cloud URL:
- https://metadata-api.library.yale.edu/metadatacloud/api/aspace/repositories/3/resources/13080?mediaType=json&include-notes=1&include-all-subjects=1