Archives Directory for the History of Collecting in America

Scott, Virginia Steele print view role Collector Patron dates 1905-1975 city Pasadena state CA other cities Pittsburgh, PA; sex F historical notes Virginia Steele Scott was an heiress who lived in Pasadena and married a local artist, Jonathan Scott. Her eclectic art collection included works by Gauguin and Picasso. Scott initially sought to establish a museum within her home. The local government halted the development due to zoning restrictions. Scott then decided to sell off her original collection and establish a new, American-centered collection, with the ultimate goal of endowing it to a local museum. She bought fifty paintings by American artists over a short period in the late 1970s, which she donated to the Huntington Gallery with funding for a gallery to house the collection and an endowment for a curator to manage it. Designed by Paul Gray, The Virginia Steele Scott Gallery of American Art opened to the public in 1984, inaugurating American art as a significant part of The Huntington's collections. Since then, the American art collection has grown dramatically, largely through the support of the Scott Foundation. decades of activity 1970-1980 updated 11/24/2025 10:11:51 bibliographic search Search Frick Art Reference Library Catalog Search Photoarchive Search Worldcat Search Library of Congress Name Authority File (LCNAF) Search Virtual International Authority File (VIAF) Archives/Repository Collection Title Collection Details The Getty Research Institute Research Libraries, Archives and Special Collections E. Maurice Bloch papers see details... «  back