Walter William Spencer Cook, also known as Walter W. S. Cook in citation (7 April 1888 – 20 September 1962) was an American art historian and professor. He specialized in Spanish Medieval art history. He was an

emeritus professor ''Emeritus'' (; female: ''emerita'') is an adjective used to designate a retired chair, professor, pastor, bishop, pope, director, president, prime minister, rabbi, emperor, or other person who has been "permitted to retain as an honorary title ...

from

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then-Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, the ...

(working from 1926–1956) and he helped found the

New York University Institute of Fine Arts The Institute of Fine Arts (IFA) of New York University is dedicated to graduate teaching and advanced research in the history of art, archaeology and the conservation and technology of works of art. It offers Master of Arts and Doctor of Philoso ...

. He had a prominent role in introducing eminent German art historians to the United States.

Early life and education

Walter William Spencer Cook was born on 7 April 1888 in

Orange Orange most often refers to: *Orange (fruit), the fruit of the tree species '' Citrus'' × ''sinensis'' ** Orange blossom, its fragrant flower *Orange (colour), from the color of an orange, occurs between red and yellow in the visible spectrum * ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

, to parents Jan Macreal and William Jeremiah Cook. He attended

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 ...

for high school, followed by studies at

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 ...

. He received his B.A. degree in 1913, and M.A. degree in 1915 from Harvard and after he was a teaching assistant in the Fine Arts Department. From 1917–1919, he attended the

American Expeditionary Force The American Expeditionary Forces (A. E. F.) was a formation of the United States Army on the Western Front of World War I. The A. E. F. was established on July 5, 1917, in France under the command of General John J. Pershing. It fought alon ...

, during World War I. From 1920 until 1921, Cook was a fellow in the Medieval and Renaissance Studies. Cook received his

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

from Harvard University in 1924, his dissertation was titled, ''Romanesque Panel Painting in Catalonia'' (1924). His doctoral advisor was

Chandler Rathfon Post Chandler Rathfon Post (1881–1959) was an American art historian and professor. He was a professor emeritus at Harvard University (working from 1909 until 1950), focused as a historian of Spanish and Italian Renaissance art and iconography. Pos ...

Career

In 1926, Cook joined New York University as faculty, and by 1932 he was made professor. By 1935, he was made a director of the graduate center and started recruiting eminent art history professors that were fleeing Germany (as Adolf Hitler's leadership was growing). Some of those recruited professors were in a visiting scholar or temporary appointment capacity, these included

Erwin Panofsky Erwin Panofsky (March 30, 1892 in Hannover – March 14, 1968 in Princeton, New Jersey) was a German-Jewish art historian, whose academic career was pursued mostly in the U.S. after the rise of the Nazi regime. Panofsky's work represents a hig ...

Walter Friedlaender Walter may refer to: People * Walter (name), both a surname and a given name * Little Walter, American blues harmonica player Marion Walter Jacobs (1930–1968) * Gunther (wrestler), Austrian professional wrestler and trainer Walter Hahn (born 19 ...

, Karl Leo Heinrich Lehmann, Martin Weinberger,

Adolph Goldschmidt Adolph Goldschmidt (15 January 1863 – 5 January 1944) was a Jewish German art historian. He taught at University of Berlin from 1892 to 1903, and University of Halle from 1904 to 1912. Biography He was born on 15 January 1863 in Hamburg, Ge ...

, Otto Homburger,

Marcel Aubert Marcel Aubert (April 9, 1884 – December 28, 1962) was a French art historian. Life Marcel Aubert was the son of an architect who died when he was only seven years old. Following his studies at the Lycée Condorcet, he entered the École Nat ...

Henri Focillon Henri Focillon (7 September 1881 – 3 March 1943) was a French art historian. He was the son of the printmaker Victor-Louis Focillon. He was Director of the Musée des Beaux-Arts in Lyon. Professor of Art History at the University of Lyon, at t ...

, Alfred Salmony,

Rudolf Wittkower Rudolf Wittkower (22 June 1901 – 11 October 1971) was a British art historian specializing in Italian Renaissance and Baroque art and architecture, who spent much of his career in London, but was educated in Germany, and later moved to the Unite ...

Jurgis Baltrušaitis Jurgis Baltrušaitis (May 2, 1873 – January 3, 1944) was a Lithuanian symbolist poet and translator, who wrote his works in Lithuanian and Russian. In addition to his important contributions to Lithuanian literature, he was noted as a politica ...

, Wolfgang Lotz, among others. Cook had many notable students, including

Harry Bober Harry Bober (1915–1988) was an American art historian, a university professor, and a writer. He was the first Avalon Professor of the Humanities a New York University (NYU). He wrote and edited several books and published numerous articles ...

, and

Mildred Steinbach Mildred Steinbach (22 December 1906 – 28 September 2002) was an art historian and the fourth Chief Librarian of the Frick Art Reference Library. Education Steinbach graduated from Vassar College, Poughkeepsie in 1929. She received a master's ...

. In 1950, Cook and

José Gudiol Ricart Josep Gudiol i Ricart, also known as José Gudiol in citation (1904–1985), was a Catalan art historian, specializing in Catalan Romanesque painting, Gothic painting and other types of Spanish art. Biography Josep Maria Gudiol i Ricart was b ...

issued ''Pintura e Imagineria Romanicas'' for the important

Ars Hispaniae Ars or ARS may refer to: Places * Ars, Iran, a village in East Azerbaijan Province, Iran * ''Ars'', various communes in France: ** Ars, Charente, in the Charente ''département'' ** Ars, Creuse, in the Creuse ''département'' ** Ars-en-Ré, in ...

book series''.'' Cook was one of only two English-speaking scholars author a volume in the set, and one of very few foreign authors. Cook built up the photographic archive of Spanish

manuscripts A manuscript (abbreviated MS for singular and MSS for plural) was, traditionally, any document written by hand – or, once practical typewriters became available, typewritten – as opposed to mechanically printed or reproduced in ...

at the

Frick Art Reference Library Photoarchive The Frick Art Reference Library Photoarchive is a study collection of more than one million photographic reproductions of works of art from the fourth to the mid-twentieth century by over 40,000 artists trained in the Western tradition located in ...

in New York City. In 1953, a special exhibition was held in his honor at

The Cloisters The Cloisters, also known as the Met Cloisters, is a museum in the Washington Heights, Manhattan, Washington Heights neighborhood of Upper Manhattan, New York City. The museum, situated in Fort Tryon Park, specializes in European medieval art ...

in New York City. Starting in 1936 he was a fellow of the

Medieval Academy of America The Medieval Academy of America (MAA; spelled Mediaeval until c. 1980) is the largest organization in the United States promoting the field of medieval studies. It was founded in 1925 and is based in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The academy publishes ...

; from 1938 the president of the

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 ...

, becoming the honorary director in 1947; he was awarded the Gold Order of Isabella la Catolica and the Medal of the Hispanic Society of America. In the 1940s, Cook served on the editorial board of ''

Art in America ''Art in America'' is an illustrated monthly, international magazine concentrating on the contemporary art world in the United States, including profiles of artists and genres, updates about art movements, show reviews and event schedules. It i ...

'' magazine. On 20 September 1962, he died at sea in the Atlantic ocean, on the

ocean liner An ocean liner is a passenger ship primarily used as a form of transportation across seas or oceans. Ocean liners may also carry cargo or mail, and may sometimes be used for other purposes (such as for pleasure cruises or as hospital ships). Ca ...

Leonardo da Vinci returning home from

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 ...

Publications

These are a select list of publications by Cook.

Books

* * *

Articles

References

{{Authority control 1888 births 1962 deaths People from Orange, Massachusetts New York University faculty New York University Institute of Fine Arts faculty American Hispanists American art historians American medievalists Fellows of the Medieval Academy of America Harvard University alumni Phillips Exeter Academy alumni