Patricia Altschul (born April 16, 1941) is an American

socialite A socialite is a person from a wealthy and (possibly) aristocratic background, who is prominent in high society. A socialite generally spends a significant amount of time attending various fashionable social gatherings, instead of having traditio ...

art collector A private collection is a privately owned collection of works (usually artworks) or valuable items. In a museum or art gallery context, the term signifies that a certain work is not owned by that institution, but is on loan from an individual ...

, and personality on the reality television series, ''

Southern Charm ''Southern Charm'' is an American reality television series that premiered on Bravo on March 3, 2014. The series chronicles the personal and professional lives of several socialites who reside in Charleston, South Carolina. The show focuses on t ...

''. She is the widow of Arthur G. Altschul, a former Goldman Sachs partner and prominent art collector and philanthropist. Mrs. Altschul has been a director or trustee of several nonprofit organizations including the

New York Historical Society The New-York Historical Society is an American history museum and library in New York City, along Central Park West between 76th and 77th Streets, on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. The society was founded in 1804 as New York's first museum. ...

and

Historic Hudson Valley Historic Hudson Valley is a not-for-profit educational and historic preservation organization headquartered in Tarrytown, New York. The organization runs tours and events at five historic properties in Westchester County, in the lower Hudson River ...

(the Rockefeller Family properties). In 2012, Altschul was given a Woman of the Year award for philanthropy by the

Police Athletic League of New York City The Police Athletic League (PAL) is an independent, nonprofit youth development agency in New York City. PAL is funded by a combination of private donations and public funding sources and is a designated charity of the New York City Police Dep ...

. In 2013, she received a Carolopolis Award from the

Preservation Society of Charleston Founded in 1920, the Preservation Society of Charleston is the oldest community-based historic preservation organization in the United States. Susan Pringle Frost founded the organization, first known as the Society for the Preservation of Old Dwell ...

for her renovation of the historic

Isaac Jenkins Mikell House The Isaac Jenkins Mikell House is an imposing Roman Revival residence in the style of grand Italian villa that was built in 1853–1854 by Edisto Island cotton planter and slave owner1850 U.S. Federal Census-Slave Schedule Isaac Jenkins Mikell ...

in Charleston, SC. On ''Southern Charm'', Patricia plays “the resident madcap grande dame” according to a profile in ''

Architectural Digest ''Architectural Digest'' is an American monthly magazine founded in 1920. Its principal subjects are interior design and landscaping, rather than pure external architecture. The magazine is published by Condé Nast, which also publishes internati ...

''. "Pat quickly became a fan favorite last year and has even drawn the affection of celebrities like

Lady Gaga Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta ( ; born March 28, 1986), known professionally as Lady Gaga, is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. She is known for her image reinventions and musical versatility. Gaga began performing as a teenag ...

who claimed 'that looking at Patricia is like looking in a mirror,'" commented TV critic Christine Lo in her blog.

Early life and career

Patricia Altschul was born Patricia Madelyn Dey in

Jacksonville, Florida Jacksonville is a city located on the Atlantic coast of northeast Florida, the most populous city proper in the state and is the largest city by area in the contiguous United States as of 2020. It is the seat of Duval County, with which the ...

in 1941 and grew up in

Richmond, Virginia (Thus do we reach the stars) , image_map = , mapsize = 250 px , map_caption = Location within Virginia , pushpin_map = Virginia#USA , pushpin_label = Richmond , pushpin_m ...

. Her parents were Francis Pearl Sudler Dey and Walter Pettus Dey, a medical doctor who graduated from the

University of Alabama The University of Alabama (informally known as Alabama, UA, or Bama) is a Public university, public research university in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Established in 1820 and opened to students in 1831, the University of Alabama is the oldest and la ...

and received a medical degree from

Tulane University Tulane University, officially the Tulane University of Louisiana, is a private university, private research university in New Orleans, Louisiana. Founded as the Medical College of Louisiana in 1834 by seven young medical doctors, it turned into ...

in 1909. Patricia was educated at Marymount School,

Olney Friends School Olney Friends School is a small, co-educational boarding and day school affiliated with the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers). Located in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains in Barnesville, Ohio, the school "challenges students to grow ...

, and

George Washington University , mottoeng = "God is Our Trust" , established = , type = Private federally chartered research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $2.8 billion (2022) , preside ...

, where she obtained a bachelor's degree ''magna cum laude'' in 1964 and then a master's degree in 1965, both in art history and archaeology. She started as an instructor and later became an assistant professor in art history at George Washington University. She lived for many years in Georgetown, where she later owned and ran Arcadia, a private art dealership that handled major paintings by such artists as

Georgia O'Keeffe Georgia Totto O'Keeffe (November 15, 1887 – March 6, 1986) was an American modernist artist. She was known for her paintings of enlarged flowers, New York skyscrapers, and New Mexico landscapes. O'Keeffe has been called the "Mother of Amer ...

Martin Johnson Heade Martin Johnson Heade (August 11, 1819 – September 4, 1904) was an American painter known for his salt marsh landscapes, seascapes, and depictions of tropical birds (such as hummingbirds), as well as lotus blossoms and other still lifes. His pai ...

, Frederick Church, and

Winslow Homer Winslow Homer (February 24, 1836 – September 29, 1910) was an American landscape painter and illustrator, best known for his marine subjects. He is considered one of the foremost painters in 19th-century America and a preeminent figure in ...

. Altschul wrote and published the book ''The Art of Southern Charm'' in 2017. In 2020, Altschul launched The Patricia Altschul Luxury Collection on the Home Shopping Network.

Marriages and social life

In 1962, Altschul married L. Hayes Smith. The couple lived in Falls Church and McLean, Virginia. Their son, film maker and television producer

Whitney Sudler-Smith Whitney Sudler-Smith (born June 2, 1968) is an American filmmaker, television director, and classically trained guitarist. He is the Creator and Executive Producer of Bravo's ''Southern Charm'', a reality docu-series about life in Charleston, ...

, was born in 1968 in Washington, D.C. They were divorced in 1979. Patricia married the doctor and entrepreneur Edward Stitt Fleming in 1989. In 1995, the couple divorced amicably. Dr. Fleming was a longtime Washington psychiatrist who founded the Psychiatric Institute of Washington and the Psychiatric Institutes of America. He was president and chief executive of Psychiatric Institutes of America, a private provider of inpatient psychiatric care, which he started in 1969 and sold in 1983. In 1996, she married Arthur Goodhart Altschul, a general partner in the investment banking firm of Goldman, Sachs & Company from 1959 to 1977 and later a limited partner. He was also one of the founders of

General American Investors The General American Investors Company, Inc. () is a closed-end fund that manages a global portfolio of investments, consisting mainly of United States securities, and also some international and private securities. History The General American ...

. Altschul was a prominent art collector, especially of paintings by Neoimpressionist,

Pointillist Pointillism (, ) is a technique of painting in which small, distinct dots of color are applied in patterns to form an image. Georges Seurat and Paul Signac developed the technique in 1886, branching from Impressionism. The term "Pointillism" wa ...

Nabis Nabis ( grc-gre, Νάβις) was the last king of independent Sparta. He was probably a member of the Heracleidae, and he ruled from 207 BC to 192 BC, during the years of the First and Second Macedonian Wars and the eponymous "War against Nabis" ...

, and

Ashcan School The Ashcan School, also called the Ash Can School, was an artistic movement in the United States during the late 19th-early 20th century that produced works portraying scenes of daily life in New York, often in the city's poorer neighborhoods. ...

artists. The Yale University Art Gallery organized a major exhibition of art from the collection. Altschul was Chairman of the board at Barnard College and a member of the boards at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Whitney Museum of American Art, National Gallery of Art, and the Smithsonian Institution. His Overbrook Foundation had assets of more than $150 million. Arthur Altschul died in 2002. While Patricia was married to Altschul, the couple were inveterate party-goers. After the attack on the World Trade Center, a ''New York Times'' reporter wrote an article about whether people should attend parties such as the upcoming gala for

New Yorkers For Children New Yorkers For Children (NYFC) is a not-for-profit organization which helps people who have aged out of the foster care system. Founded in 1996 by Nicholas Scoppetta in Manhattan, New York, the organization focuses on the academic success of fo ...

, given the tragedy of 9/11. She interviewed Patricia and wrote: :"'People were saying, 'Should I go, is it right?'" said Patricia Altschul, wife of the philanthropist and investor Arthur Altschul. She had thought about wearing black ("It seems more sober"), but decided on a pale green silk suit, embroidered with flowers, by Oscar de la Renta. "Yes, I was going to wear black, but at some point you have to get back to life," Mrs. Altschul said. "I think the Mayor udy Giulianigave everyone permission to be out with their friends." Altschul's prominence (and donations) helped her to be named to the Board of the

and the Rockefeller family Hudson Hills Trust. She was described by novelist

Jay McInerney John Barrett "Jay" McInerney Jr. (; born January 13, 1955) is an American novelist, screenwriter, editor, and columnist. His novels include '' Bright Lights, Big City'', ''Ransom'', '' Story of My Life'', ''Brightness Falls'', and ''The Last of ...

New York Magazine ''New York'' is an American biweekly magazine concerned with life, culture, politics, and style generally, and with a particular emphasis on New York City. Founded by Milton Glaser and Clay Felker in 1968 as a competitor to ''The New Yorker'', ...

as being one of New York's “Big Girls” – “the wives (and widows and heiresses) who are the keepers of the benefit circuit.” The Altschuls were frequently seen with other society types such as

Melania Melania is a feminine given name that derives from the Greek word (melania) meaning "black, dark". People named Melania include: * Melania the Elder (350–410), a Christian saint and an influential figure in the ascetic movement * Melania the ...

and

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pe ...

and Patricia's friends

Georgette Mosbacher Georgette Mosbacher (née Paulsin; January 16, 1947) is an American business executive, entrepreneur, political activist who served as the United States Ambassador to Poland from 2018 to 2021. She is the chairman of the Green Beret Foundation ad ...

, Deeda Blair, an
Carolyn Roehm
former wife of

Henry Kravis Henry R. Kravis (born January 6, 1944) is an American businessman, investor, and philanthropist.

Long Island Long Island is a densely populated island in the southeastern region of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, part of the New York metropolitan area. With over 8 million people, Long Island is the most populous island in the United Sta ...

estate "Southerly" overlooking Oyster Bay from Ambassador Hushang & Maryam Ansary. They hired

Mario Buatta Mario Buatta (October 20, 1935 – October 15, 2018) was an American interior decorator. Early life and education Born in West Brighton, Staten Island, New York, he was the son of Felice Buatta, who worked as a violinist and bandleader under th ...

to redecorate. "The view is sensational and magical: you can see the water from every room in the house," Mrs. Altschul later told ''The New York Times''. After Arthur's death, Patricia decided to put "Southerly" up for sale and move back to the South. Reporter M.J. Smith commented in ''The New York Times'' about the house that, "While the allusions to F. Scott Fitzgerald and Jazz Age parties may be trite, it is hard not to think of them when it comes to Southerly, a 10,000-square-foot Long Island estate that is now on the market for $15.8 million."

Renovation of Mikell House

Isaac Jenkins Mikell House in Charleston

In 2008, Altschul decided to leave New York for Charleston. She purchased the historic

, an imposing 1854 Greek Revival residence noted for its pedimented portico with six large columns having capitals ornamented with rams’ heads. The house was formerly the Charleston Free Library and served as a public library until the early 1960s when it reverted to a private residence. Altschul was said to have paid over $4.8 million for the house and spent over $5 million renovating it. The ''New York Post'' noted that it has "a picturesque piazza and 18th-century French toilets." In 2013 the

gave Altschul a Pro Merito Award/Carolopolis Award for her renovation of the house, and it was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

in 2014. In addition to the main house, there is a kitchen building and separate coach house on the Mikell House premises.

Involvement with ''Southern Charm''

When Altschul's son, producer

, decided to create a reality TV show about life in Charleston, he urged his mother to participate. In ''

'', Patricia plays "the resident madcap grande dame," according to ''Architectural Digest''. She is a "straight shooter with a serious pedigree and a ton of clout to throw around . . . famous for her no-nonsense advice, wicked tongue, and appreciation for a high quality cocktail," says blogger and TV critic Christine Lo. She provides sometimes snarky comments about the misdeeds of younger cast members. Patricia said she hasn't lost any sleep over how she'll be portrayed. “I frankly don’t care,” she says. “I always say exactly what I think and they can do what they want. I just don’t want them putting up any ugly pictures of me.”

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Altschul, Patricia 1941 births Living people 20th-century art collectors American art collectors Women art collectors American socialites Participants in American reality television series People from Jacksonville, Florida People from Richmond, Virginia Columbian College of Arts and Sciences alumni Lehman family Olney Friends School alumni