Mitchell "Micky" Wolfson Jr. (born September 30, 1939) is an American businessman, collector, and the founder of the

Wolfsonian Museum The Wolfsonian–Florida International University or The Wolfsonian-FIU, located in the heart of the Art Deco District of Miami Beach, Florida, is a museum, library and research center that uses its collection to illustrate the persuasive power of ...

Miami Beach Miami Beach is a coastal resort city in Miami-Dade County, Florida. It was incorporated on March 26, 1915. The municipality is located on natural and man-made barrier islands between the Atlantic Ocean and Biscayne Bay, the latter of which sep ...

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

, and

Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the List of cities in Italy, sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian ce ...

–

Nervi Nervi is a former fishing village 12 miles (19 km) northwest of Portofino on the Riviera di Levante, now a seaside resort in Liguria, in northwest Italy. Once an independent ''comune'', it is now a ''quartiere'' of Genoa. Nervi is 4 miles ( ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

Early life and education

He was born in

Miami Beach, Florida Miami Beach is a coastal resort city in Miami-Dade County, Florida. It was incorporated on March 26, 1915. The municipality is located on natural and artificial island, man-made barrier islands between the Atlantic Ocean and Biscayne Bay, the ...

and raised in Miami Beach and

Asheville, North Carolina Asheville ( ) is a city in, and the county seat of, Buncombe County, North Carolina. Located at the confluence of the French Broad and Swannanoa rivers, it is the largest city in Western North Carolina, and the state's 11th-most populous cit ...

, the son of Frances Cohen (December 16, 1906– May 9, 1980) and

Mitchell Wolfson Mitchell Wolfson Sr. (1900 – January 28, 1983) was an American businessman, theatre owner, politician, and founder of Wometco Enterprises. Biography Wolfson was born in 1900 in Key West, Florida. He went to school in Key West and at Erasm ...

(1900–1983), the founder of

Wometco Enterprises Wometco Enterprises (also known simply as Wometco) is an American company headquartered in Coral Gables, Florida; a suburb of Miami. It was once a large media company with diversified holdings, but slowly sold off its assets during the early 1980s ...

in 1925 and the first Jewish mayor of Miami Beach in 1943. His older brother, Louis Wolfson II, was a Florida state representative from

Miami-Dade County Miami-Dade County is a county located in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Florida. The county had a population of 2,701,767 as of the 2020 census, making it the most populous county in Florida and the seventh-most populous county in ...

from 1963–1973. Wolfson received an undergraduate degree from

Princeton University Princeton University is a private university, private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial Colleges, fourth-oldest ins ...

and a master's degree in International relations from the Paul N. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies at

Johns Hopkins University Johns Hopkins University (Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private university, private research university in Baltimore, Maryland. Founded in 1876, Johns Hopkins is the oldest research university in the United States and in the western hem ...

Activities

In 1986 Wolfson established The Wolfsonian Foundation, a research center and museum in Miami Beach, and began publishing ''The Journal of Decorative and Propaganda Art'', a journal fostering scholarship in late 19th- and early 20th-century design. In the same year he acquired the

Mackenzie Castle The Mackenzie Castle (Italian: ''Castello Mackenzie'') is a historical manor in the Castelletto quarter of Genoa, northern Italy. It is an example of Gothic Revival architecture. Registered as a cultural space Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the List of cities in Italy, sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian ce ...

to house his collection, although the restoration works he commissioned remained unfinished and the manor was later sold to an auction house. Wolfson co-authored ''Miami Beach: Blueprint of an Eden'' with artist

Michele Oka Doner Michele Oka Doner (born 1945, Miami Beach, Florida, United States) is an American artist and author who works in a variety of media including sculpture, prints, drawings, functional objects and video. She has also worked in costume and set de ...

. Published in 2005, the book is a personal portrayal of Miami Beach from the 1920s through the 1960s.Herbert Muschamp ''New York Times Sunday Magazine'

reprinted in his ''Hearts of the City: The Selected Writings of Herbert Muschamp,'' Knopf:New York 2009 pp.786-788 He is president of The Wolfson Initiative, Washington Storage Company, and the Novecento Corporation. He sits on the Wolfsonian-FIU Advisory Board and the Florida International University Board of Directors and is a trustee for the Mitchell Wolfson Senior Foundation that supports educational and health issues. Also, he is a trustee for the Mitchell Wolfson Family Foundation that supports the

Audubon House and Tropical Gardens The Audubon House & Tropical Gardens is located at 205 Whitehead Street, Key West, Florida. Brick-pathed gardens offer a lush view of orchids, bromeliads, and other tropical foliage, an herb garden and 1840-style nursery. The house has many ...

Key West, Florida Key West ( es, Cayo Hueso) is an island in the Straits of Florida, within the U.S. state of Florida. Together with all or parts of the separate islands of Sigsbee Park, Dredgers Key, Fleming Key, Sunset Key, and the northern part of Stock Isla ...

. He is a member of the International Council of th
Museum of Arts and Design
the International Council of The

Museum of Modern Art The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It plays a major role in developing and collecting modern art, and is often identified as one of ...

, the International Council of Les Arts Décoratifs in

Paris, France Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...

, and a past member of the American Friends of the Louvre. He is on the advisory council of Princeton University’s Department of Comparative Literature and on the advisory council of the Paul N. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University.

Museums

In 1997 he donated his collection, estimated at 80,000 objects, and the state-of-the-art museum to

Florida International University Florida International University (FIU) is a public university, public research university with its main campus in Miami-Dade County. Founded in 1965, the school opened its doors to students in 1972. FIU has grown to become the third-largest uni ...

. It was the basis for the Wolfsonian Museum-FIU, a research center and museum. In downtown Miami, the new ''Mitchell Wolfson Jr. Study Centre'' provides access to a collection of decorative, design and propaganda arts of the period 1885 to 1945. In Italy, the newly inaugurate
Wolfsoniana Museum
in

exhibits elements from his collection that comprises more than 18,000 works on paper, paintings, sculpture, furniture and decorative objects. He recently donated his Italian collection to th
Fondazione Cristoforo Colombo
in Genoa. The City of Genoa has opened the Wolfsoniana Museum and a research center in the local

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 ...

. He also established the ''Wolfsonian International Council'' to support an exchange of scholarship and exhibitions between Miami's Wolfsonian-FIU and Genoa's Wolfsoniana.

References

External links

The Wolfson Collection

Museum, Design Store + Coffee Bar in Miami Beach

Founder , Wolfsonian-FIU
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wolfson, Mitchell 1939 births Living people People from Miami Beach, Florida Wolfson Jr. Museum founders Wometco Enterprises Wolfson family American art collectors Jewish American art collectors Jewish American philanthropists Princeton University alumni Businesspeople from Florida 20th-century American businesspeople 20th-century American philanthropists 21st-century American businesspeople 21st-century philanthropists Johns Hopkins University alumni 21st-century American Jews