The Lamont Gallery is a

non-profit A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

art gallery located on the campus of

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

Exeter Exeter () is a city in Devon, South West England. It is situated on the River Exe, approximately northeast of Plymouth and southwest of Bristol. In Roman Britain, Exeter was established as the base of Legio II Augusta under the personal comm ...

New Hampshire New Hampshire is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...

, United States. It primarily showcases visiting exhibitions of local, national and international acclaimed artists, along with art of Phillips Exeter students and faculty. However, it also possesses a small collection.

History

The museum was commissioned in 1951 and began construction in June 1952. The gallery was given to the school by the Lamont family, which includes academy alumni such as Thomas W. Lamont,

Corliss Lamont Corliss Lamont (March 28, 1902 – April 26, 1995) was an American socialist and humanist philosopher and advocate of various left-wing and civil liberties causes. As a part of his political activities, he was the Chairman of National Council ...

, and

Ned Lamont Edward Miner Lamont Jr. (born January 3, 1954) is an American businessman and politician serving as the 89th governor of Connecticut. He has served in this position since January 9, 2019. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as a Greenwi ...

, as well as by alumni Harvey Kent and Earl F. Slick, the founder of

Slick Airways Slick Airways was a cargo airline from the United States, that operated scheduled and chartered flights between 1946 and 1966. The airline was founded by Earl Slick, a Texas aviator and multimillionaire who along with his brother had inherited $ ...

. The cost of the establishment paid through donations was valued at $150,000. The Davison Construction Company was contracted to build the gallery, which was an extension on the Mayer Art Center building, then named Alumni Hall. It was named in honor of Thomas William Lamont II, class of 1942, who died aboard the USS ''Snook'' in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

when it went missing on April 8, 1945, and was dedicated as a part of Alumni Day celebrations on May 30, 1953. The first director of the gallery was Glen Krause. Cabot Lyford, a prominent sculptor, served as the director of the gallery while leading the art department of Exeter. The gallery is in part, supported by the

Michael C. Rockefeller Michael Clark Rockefeller (May 18, 1938 – presumed to have died November 19, 1961) was the fifth child of New York Governor and former U.S. Vice President Nelson Rockefeller. He was the grandson of American financier John D. Rockefeller ...

’56 Visiting Artists Fund.

Collection

The Lamont Gallery's most famous painting in its possession is ''Irene Estrella'', by

Diego Rivera Diego María de la Concepción Juan Nepomuceno Estanislao de la Rivera y Barrientos Acosta y Rodríguez, known as Diego Rivera (; December 8, 1886 – November 24, 1957), was a prominent Mexican painter. His large frescoes helped establish the ...

, which was donated to the gallery by Exeter alumnus

in 1954. It was donated to the academy by

, and has been shown at museums such as the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, the

Doge's Palace The Doge's Palace ( it, Palazzo Ducale; vec, Pałaso Dogal) is a palace built in Venetian Gothic style, and one of the main landmarks of the city of Venice in northern Italy. The palace was the residence of the Doge of Venice, the supreme auth ...

in Venice, and the

Musée d'Orsay The Musée d'Orsay ( , , ) ( en, Orsay Museum) is a museum in Paris, France, on the Left Bank of the Seine. It is housed in the former Gare d'Orsay, a Beaux-Arts railway station built between 1898 and 1900. The museum holds mainly French art ...

in Paris. Its collection also includes several more paintings by Rivera including a portrait of Lamont, various works by

John James Audubon John James Audubon (born Jean-Jacques Rabin; April 26, 1785 – January 27, 1851) was an American self-trained artist, naturalist, and ornithologist. His combined interests in art and ornithology turned into a plan to make a complete pictoria ...

George Inness George Inness (May 1, 1825 – August 3, 1894) was a prominent United States, American landscape painting, landscape painter. Now recognized as one of the most influential American artists of the nineteenth century, Inness was influenced b ...

Yousuf Karsh Yousuf Karsh, FRPS (December 23, 1908 – July 13, 2002) was a Canadian-Armenian photographer known for his portraits of notable individuals. He has been described as one of the greatest portrait photographers of the 20th century. An Armenian ...

Maud Morgan Maud (Cabot) Morgan (March 1, 1903 – March 14, 1999) was an American modern artist and teacher who is best known for her abstract expressionism. She mentored Frank Stella and Carl Andre, and had art pieces shown alongside such notable contempor ...

, and Kiyoshi Saitō, as well four metal sculptures by

Gerald Laing Gerald Ogilvie-Laing (11 February 1936 – 23 November 2011) was a British pop artist and sculptor. He lived in the Scottish Highlands. Early life Laing was born in Newcastle upon Tyne on 11 February 1936, a son of Maj. and Mrs. Gerald Ogilvie ...

and two additional sculptures by

Anthony Caro Sir Anthony Alfred Caro (8 March 192423 October 2013) was an English abstract sculptor whose work is characterised by assemblages of metal using ' found' industrial objects. His style was of the modernist school, having worked with Henry Moor ...

and Tony Smith, which are on display around the school campus. The gallery also possesses numerous artifacts dating to as far as the

Han dynasty The Han dynasty (, ; ) was an imperial dynasty of China (202 BC – 9 AD, 25–220 AD), established by Liu Bang (Emperor Gao) and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–207 BC) and a warr ...

, which have been donated to the gallery by Phillips Exeter alumni.

Visiting exhibitions

The Lamont Gallery frequently showcases the works of visiting artists and Exeter students and faculty. Recent exhibitions include "Neighboring", which showed the work of residents of Rockingham County; "2016, A State of Mind Boston Printmakers Members Show", which featured the works of members of the Boston Printmakers; and "Self Made", which displayed works exploring identity. The photographs of

Elizabeth Gill Lui Elizabeth Gill Lui (born Nancy Elizabeth Gill; February 6, 1951) in Yonkers, New York is an American photographer and artist. Early life and education Elizabeth Gill Lui, daughter to U.S. Air Force Colonel Richard M.Gill and Shirley Squire, sp ...

, an academy parent, have been displayed in "Open Hearts Open Doors", and the photographs of Steve Schapiro have been displayed in "Heroes". Visiting speakers have included photographer Matt Black. Art on display has been loaned from the

New York Metropolitan Museum of Art The Metropolitan Museum of Art of New York City, colloquially "the Met", is the largest art museum in the Americas. Its permanent collection contains over two million works, divided among 17 curatorial departments. The main building at 1000 F ...

."Special Events at Exeter Mark its 200th Year". ''The Boston Globe''. 26 October 1980.

References

{{Authority control Art museums and galleries in New Hampshire Lamont family Phillips Exeter Academy School museums

History

Collection

Visiting exhibitions

See also

References