Archives Directory for the History of Collecting in America

Martin, Alastair Bradley

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role Collector
dates 1917-2010
city Katonah
stateNY
other citiesGlen Head, NY; New York, NY;
sex M
historical notes Alastair Bradley Martin was an investor and collector who began his activity shortly after World War II.

According to the New York Times (March 3, 2000), when naming their collection, he and his wife Edith Park Martin used the Welsh word gwennol (meaning martin, the bird) in memory of their honeymoon in Wales.

The Martins collected sculpture, painting, textiles, and folk art. The works in the collection range from an Olmec jade figure, circa 800-500 B.C. to a Willem de Kooning painting; a Joseph Cornell sculpture; a 19th-century Noah’s ark toy; a terra cotta head from Nigeria; and a painted scroll from 12th-century Japan.

Alastair Bradley and Edith Park Martin began collecting in the late 1940s. Their passion for objects transcended any collecting category or period, featuring outstanding examples of ancient art of many cultures, American Folk Art, African and Asian Art. Works of art were not selected for investment or because of trends in the market; their taste was highly personal and eclectic. Of their collecting, Mr. Martin once wrote, “The fundamental rule is this: If something gives you pleasure, buy it.” Their enthusiasm for collecting was matched only by their generosity.

Beginning in 1948, Mr. Martin became a trustee of the Brooklyn Museum of Art, and for a term, served as the Board’s President. It was a long association that included the donation of important objects and the loan of dozens of significant works, including The Guennol Lioness. Various treasures from their collection have also been lent for special exhibitions at other institutions such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Fogg Art Museum, and Jewish Museum. The Guennol Collection has also been the subject of separate, single collection exhibitions at both the Metropolitan Museum of Art (1969) and the Brooklyn Museum of Art (2000).

decades
of activity
1940-1950
1950-1960
1960-1970
1870-1880
1880-1890
updated 03/22/2024 12:09:29
bibliographic
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Archives/Repository Collection Title Collection Details
The Brooklyn Museum Libraries and Archives
200 Eastern Parkway
Asides on the alchemy of art collecting and informal notes on the Guennol collection see details...
The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Please see individual record for location
Guennol : reflections on collecting, 2003 June. Alistair B. Martin. see details...
The Brooklyn Museum Libraries and Archives
200 Eastern Parkway
Brooklyn Museum. Dept. of Asian Art. Records, 1925-2003 (inclusive). see details...
The Brooklyn Museum Libraries and Archives
200 Eastern Parkway
Guide to the Records of the Department of Asian Art
1925 - 2003
see details...
The Brooklyn Museum Libraries and Archives
200 Eastern Parkway
Guennol : reflections on collecting, 2003 June / Alastair B. Martin. see details...

see also:
Martin, Edith Park