Taft Museum of Art

Donated to the city of Cincinnati in 1927, Charles and Anna Taft’s collection features beautiful porcelain from the Ming and Qing dynasties, paintings by masters including Rembrandt, Gainsborough, Goya, Ingres, Corot, Whistler, and Sargent, and decorative objects including crystal, gold, silver, and enamel-work. The 80 works that feature in this volume, chosen from the 740-piece collection, are presented in four sections, coinciding with the museum’s major areas of specialization: European painting, European decorative arts, American art and Chinese art.

Each piece is accompanied by an entry detailing its history and that of its artist or maker written by Taft curatorial staff. Lynne D. Ambrosini’s essay explores the collecting practice of Charles and Anna Taft. Deborah Emont Scott’s foreword provides a history of the Taft bequest and its lasting significance to the city of Cincinnati and its inhabitants.

Author biographies

Lynne D. Ambrosini is deputy director and the Sallie Robinson Wadsworth Chief
Curator, Taft Museum of Art, OH

Deborah Emont Scott is the director of the Taft Museum of Art

Table of contents

1. Foreword by Deborah Emont Scott
2. Acknowledgments by Lynne D. Ambrosini
3. Charles and Anna Taft: Forming a Gilded Age Art Collection by Lynne D. Ambrosini
4. The Taft Museum of Art Collections
   I European Painting
   II European Decorative Arts
   III American Art
   IV Chinese Art
5. Sources of Quotations
6. Index
7. Photograph Credits