Learn about Abby Aldrich Rockefeller and the creation of the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA)
A discussion concerning Abby Aldrich Rockefeller and the creation of MoMA, from the documentary In Our Time: The Museum of Modern Art.
Great Museums Television (A Britannica Publishing Partner)
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Transcript
NARRATOR: In the 1920s Abby Rockefeller [music in], Lillie Bliss, and Mary Quinn Sullivan had a vision for the future.
MARJORIE SCHWARZER: While John D. Rockefeller was founding Colonial Williamsburg down in Virginia, his wife, Abby Aldrich Rockefeller, was founding the nation's most-important contemporary-art museum.
DAVID ROCKEFELLER: I was the youngest of six children, so I spent a lot of time with Mother, visiting museums and seeing paintings. She was not only fond of—of contemporary art, but the fact that she did enjoy contemporary as well is perhaps the most unusual aspect. The concept behind MoMA originally was to create a space where contemporary living artists could show their work.
[Music out]
MARJORIE SCHWARZER: While John D. Rockefeller was founding Colonial Williamsburg down in Virginia, his wife, Abby Aldrich Rockefeller, was founding the nation's most-important contemporary-art museum.
DAVID ROCKEFELLER: I was the youngest of six children, so I spent a lot of time with Mother, visiting museums and seeing paintings. She was not only fond of—of contemporary art, but the fact that she did enjoy contemporary as well is perhaps the most unusual aspect. The concept behind MoMA originally was to create a space where contemporary living artists could show their work.
[Music out]