Arthur Kingsland Wheelock Jr. (born May 13, 1943, in

Uxbridge Uxbridge () is a suburban town in west London and the administrative headquarters of the London Borough of Hillingdon. Situated west-northwest of Charing Cross, it is one of the major metropolitan centres identified in the London Plan. Uxbrid ...

) is an American

art historian Art history is the study of aesthetic objects and visual expression in historical and stylistic context. Traditionally, the discipline of art history emphasized painting, drawing, sculpture, architecture, ceramics and decorative arts; yet today ...

, who served as Curator of Northern Baroque Paintings at the

National Gallery of Art The National Gallery of Art, and its attached Sculpture Garden, is a national art museum in Washington, D.C., United States, located on the National Mall, between 3rd and 9th Streets, at Constitution Avenue NW. Open to the public and free of char ...

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

until retiring in 2018. Wheelock also teaches as a professor of art history at the

University of Maryland The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the University System of M ...

Early life and education

The son of Arthur, former president of

Stanley Woolen Mill Stanley Woolen Mill is the common historic name applied to a defunct company based in southeastern Massachusetts and to the company's buildings which stand at the southern entrance to the Blackstone River and Canal Heritage State Park. The mill is ...

, and Ann Kneass, Wheelock grew up in

and graduated from

Phillips Exeter Academy (not for oneself) la, Finis Origine Pendet (The End Depends Upon the Beginning) gr, Χάριτι Θεοῦ (By the Grace of God) , location = 20 Main Street , city = Exeter, New Hampshire , zipcode ...

in 1961. His father's side is descendant from

Ralph Wheelock Ralph Wheelock (1600–1683) was an English Puritan minister, American colonial public official, and educator. He is known for having been the first public school teacher in America. Early life and education Ralph Wheelock was most likely born i ...

, attributed to be the forerunner of founding

public education State schools (in England, Wales, Australia and New Zealand) or public schools (Scottish English and North American English) are generally primary or secondary schools that educate all students without charge. They are funded in whole or in pa ...

in the United States. Wheelock then received a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

art history Art history is the study of aesthetic objects and visual expression in historical and stylistic context. Traditionally, the discipline of art history emphasized painting, drawing, sculpture, architecture, ceramics and decorative arts; yet today ...

from

Williams College Williams College is a Private college, private liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Williamstown, Massachusetts. It was established as a men's college in 1793 with funds from the estate of Ephraim Williams, a col ...

in 1965 and was part of the

Delta Upsilon Delta Upsilon (), commonly known as DU, is a collegiate men's fraternity founded on November 4, 1834 at Williams College in Williamstown, Massachusetts. It is the sixth-oldest, all-male, college Greek Letter Organizations#Greek letters, Greek-let ...

fraternity. He then went on to receive a

Doctor of Philosophy A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common Academic degree, degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields ...

from

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

in 1973. Wheelock's dissertation was titled "The Shifting Relationship of Perspective to Optics and its Manifestation in Paintings by Artists in Delft around 1650." In 2018, he received the

honorary degree An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or ''ad hono ...

of Doctor of Arts from

Dickinson University , mottoeng = Freedom is made safe through character and learning , established = , type = Private liberal arts college , endowment = $645.5 million (2022) , president = ...

Career

Wheelock began his career in museums as a David E. Finley Fellow at the

in 1973 and later was also named Research Curator, under director J. Carter Brown. He also commenced teaching at the

, where he has held the post of Professor of Art History. Wheelock was appointed Curator of Dutch and Flemish Painting at the National Gallery two years later, which eventually led to his appointment as Curator of Northern Baroque Paintings. He has lectured widely on Dutch and

Flemish Flemish (''Vlaams'') is a Low Franconian dialect cluster of the Dutch language. It is sometimes referred to as Flemish Dutch (), Belgian Dutch ( ), or Southern Dutch (). Flemish is native to Flanders, a historical region in northern Belgium; ...

art and has authored several publications on the subjects.

Awards and honors

*Knight of the

Order of Orange-Nassau The Order of Orange-Nassau ( nl, Orde van Oranje-Nassau, links=no) is a civil and military Dutch order of chivalry founded on 4 April 1892 by the queen regent, Emma of the Netherlands. The order is a chivalric order open to "everyone who has ...

(1982) *

College Art Association The College Art Association of America (CAA) is the principal organization in the United States for professionals in the visual arts, from students to art historians to emeritus faculty. Founded in 1911, it "promotes these arts and their understa ...

Award for Distinction in Scholarship and Conservation (1993) * Williams College Bicentennial Medal (1996) *Commander of the

Order of Leopold Order of Leopold may refer to: * Order of Leopold (Austria), founded in 1808 by emperor Francis I of Austria and discontinued in 1918 * Order of Leopold (Belgium), founded in 1832 by king Leopold I of Belgium * Order of Leopold II, founded in Congo ...

(2006) *

Art Libraries Society of North America The Art Libraries Society of North America (also known as ARLIS/NA) was founded in 1972. It is an organization made up of approximately 1,000 art librarians, library students and visual resource professionals. Activities ARLIS/NA organizes activ ...

George Wittenborn Memorial Book Award (2014) *

Kellogg Award (2015)

Personal life

Wheelock married Susan Hoffman on June 13, 1964, with whom he had three children: Laura, Matthew, and Tobey. They divorced in 1988. On August 24, 1991, Wheelock married Perry Carpenter Swain.

References

External links