Agnes Gund, who led major expansion of MoMA, dies at 87
Agnes Gund, a renowned art collector and philanthropist who played a pivotal role in expanding the Museum of Modern Art in the 1990s and promoting contemporary art, died Thursday night at her Manhattan home. She was 87. Her daughter, Catherine Gund, confirmed her passing.
Gund was a devoted collector, surrounding herself with works by artists such as Mark Rothko, Jasper Johns, James Rosenquist, and Brice Marden. Later, she focused on amplifying the work of nonwhite and international artists. In 2017, she privately sold Roy Lichtenstein’s “Masterpiece” for $165 million, using $100 million to establish the Art for Justice Fund, which provided grants for criminal justice reform until its closure in 2023. Known for her generosity, Gund often remarked that she gave away more than she could comfortably afford, sometimes selling cherished pieces from her collection to support her philanthropic initiatives.
Her involvement with MoMA began in 1967 when she joined the museum’s international council. She rose through the ranks and became president in 1991, holding the unpaid post for 11 years. During her tenure, she oversaw an $858 million expansion that included a new building by Yoshio Taniguchi, doubling the museum’s exhibition space. Gund also created a fund to support contemporary artists who lacked corporate backing and was instrumental in merging MoMA with the P.S. 1 Center for Contemporary Art, now MoMA PS1.
Gund maintained close relationships with leading contemporary artists, including Ellsworth Kelly, Roy Lichtenstein, Jasper Johns, and Frank Stella, and consistently championed female and Black artists. She was widely recognized for her commitment to supporting living artists, taking risks to promote their work, and ensuring their visibility in major institutions.
Born August 13, 1938, in Cleveland, Gund developed an early interest in art through classes at the Cleveland Museum and during her time at Miss Porter’s School. After graduating from Connecticut College for Women in 1960, she married Albrecht Saalfield, with whom she had four children, including Catherine. She later married Daniel Shapiro, though both marriages ended in divorce.
Gund inherited significant wealth from her father, George Gund II, and used it to build a formidable art collection including works by Henry Moore, Joseph Cornell, Willem de Kooning, Eva Hesse, Kara Walker, and Lorna Simpson. She donated extensively to institutions such as the Cleveland Museum of Art, MoMA, and the Philadelphia Museum of Art.
Beyond collecting, Gund championed art education and social causes. In 1977, she co-founded Studio in a School, bringing artists into New York City public schools, an initiative still benefiting low-income students nearly five decades later. She earned a master’s degree in art history from Harvard in 1980 and served on boards of numerous museums and foundations, including the Robert Rauschenberg Foundation and the Socrates Sculpture Park. She also received the National Medal of Arts in 1997.
Gund co-founded the Center for Curatorial Leadership in 2007 to train curators and strengthen museum leadership. In 2023, following the Supreme Court’s decision overturning Roe v. Wade, she sold Roy Lichtenstein’s “Mirror #5” for $3.1 million, donating the proceeds to reproductive rights organizations.
Survived by her children Catherine, David, Anna, and Jessica Saalfield, her siblings Gordon, Geoffrey, and Louise Gund, and 12 grandchildren, Gund leaves behind a legacy of philanthropy, advocacy, and unwavering support for contemporary art. Her life reflected a dedication to using art as a vehicle for education, social justice, and cultural enrichment.
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