Robert M. Edsel
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Robert M. Edsel is the American author of the non-fiction book Rescuing Da Vinci, and a co-producer of the two-hour documentary film entitled The Rape of Europa.
[edit] Early life
Robert Edsel was born on December 28, 1956 in Oak Park, Illinois and raised in Dallas, Texas by his parents, Alpha Ray and Norma Edsel. His mother, a housewife, spent her days teaching bridge, piano, and volunteering for various charities and organizations. Edsel’s father, Alpha Ray, is a World War II veteran (Marine Corps) and served in the Pacific. After the war, he returned to Oklahoma and attended college on the GI Bill; and he later began his long career as a stockbroker at Smith Barney. Alpha Ray opened Smith Barney’s first regional office west of the Mississippi in Dallas in 1960 and remained manager of that office until he retired in 1994.
The oldest of three children, Robert Edsel attended a private boys school called St. Mark’s School of Texas in Dallas, renowned for its educational emphasis on communications skills, the arts, and athletics. This school not only provided Edsel with an invaluable education, but built the foundation for Edsel’s long-term passion for learning. As the leader of the St. Mark’s tennis team, Edsel regularly competed in state and regional tennis tournaments, maintaining state and national rankings.
Tennis Career
Edsel graduated from St. Mark’s in 1975 and briefly attended the University of Georgia. In pursuit of his passion, Edsel transferred to Southern Methodist University in 1976 to play on the school’s nationally ranked tennis team and participated in several professional qualifying tournaments. It was here that Edsel was presented with the opportunity to work for the World Championship Tennis (WCT), the principal tour organizer of men’s professional tennis at that time. As the assistant tournament director of the WCT Finals Tournament in Dallas – the most coveted men’s tennis title after the four Grand Slam tournaments – Edsel was exposed to new perspectives of the sport he loved. This led to a newfound interest in the business side of tennis; thus, opening doors to the next chapter of his life.
Oil and Gas Exploration
Graduating from SMU in 1979 with a B.A. in Finance, Robert Edsel was immediately offered a job as an administrative assistant to an independent oil and gas producer. The unique job sent Edsel on a fast-track learning process; and after a year and half of employment, Edsel embarked on his own. He began assembling oil and gas leases to create drilling prospects for sale to other oil and gas exploration companies, and particularly cultivated an expertise in the Giddings Austin Chalk Field in central Texas. From 1981 to 1986, Edsel successfully generated dozens of prospects that resulted in the drilling of more than 150 producing wells. In 1986, Edsel consolidated his oil and gas operations into a new company – Gemini Exploration Company – in which he began innovatively drilling and operating his own prospects.
Gemini Exploration pioneered the use of horizontal drilling technology throughout the early 1990s, which was particularly successful when applied to the existing older wells of Giddings field. This phenomenon received several technology awards and established the world record for the longest dual-opposing lateral well – totaling a combined horizontal displacement of 8,183 feet. Within a two-year period (1993-1995), Gemini Exploration grew from a company with eight employees to almost 100; and by 1995, Gemini had become the second most active driller of horizontal wells in the United States. Edsel sold the company’s assets to Union Pacific Resources Company (now a part of Anadarko Petroleum) in May 1995 for $37.9 million.
Exploring Life
Part of Edsel’s decision to sell his company’s assets was his plan to withdraw from active business to move to Europe with his wife, Brenda Schoenfeld, the well-known jewelry designer, and their three-year-old son, Diego. The family lived briefly in France before settling in Florence, Italy. Having worked virtually full-time since the age of nineteen, Edsel was determined to rid his mind of financial business and explore the true meaning of life. Thus, immersing himself in the cultures of France and Italy, Edsel focused upon learning about new languages, customs, art, and architecture. Edsel gained a true appreciation for the great masterworks and historical artifacts during this time, as he spent his days studying within the magnificent museums throughout Europe.
While in Florence, Edsel first learned about Hitler’s determination to build the world’s greatest museum and the subsequent theft of Europe’s most precious artwork by the Nazis. One day, while standing on the Ponte Vecchio, Edsel asked himself, “How did all of these great cultural treasures and works of art survive the devastating destructiveness or World War II? Who rescued them?” Thus was born the idea for Rescuing Da Vinci, leading Edsel on a great journey to locate the heroes who had saved these great works of art and to discover their stories.
This newfound inspiration led Edsel to climb Mount Kilimanjaro with six friends in 1997. Upon his return, Edsel and his wife purchased a villa in the Bellosguardo area of Florence and began what would become a multi-year project of redesign and renovation of both the home and surrounding gardens. By the time he completed the project, Edsel had established a new standard of living by blending old world culture and ambiance with modern amenities and conveniences.
Creative Works
Eager to re-immerse himself in business and energized by his new passions for culture, Edsel attended a Harvard Business School course entitled “Odyssey: The Second Half of Life.” Following his divorce in 2000, Edsel lived for a time in New York City, where he committed himself to the Rescuing Da Vinci project. By 2004, those efforts had become a fulltime career. Edsel assembled a team of researchers who combed archives in more than a dozen countries for photographs and other documentation of this story, while he conducted a considerable amount of the research himself. By 2005, he had gathered thousands of photographs and other documents, and began writing the manuscript for Rescuing Da Vinci, ultimately published in 2006.
Continuing his creative streak, Edsel co-produced Actual Films’ documentary film, The Rape of Europa, based on the award-winning book by scholar Lynn Nicholas. In the fall of 2004, Edsel traveled with the filmmakers for nine weeks as they filmed throughout Europe and Russia. Additional shooting and editing in 2005 and 2006 incorporated the stunning conclusion of the Maria Altmann restitution case. The film will premiere at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts on November 12, 2006 with subsequent screenings in key museums across the country. It has also been accepted into numerous film festivals including the Boston, Washington, and New York Jewish Film Festivals, along with festivals in Denver and Palm Springs. It is narrated by acclaimed actress Joan Allen, and will be broadcast on PBS in April/May 2007.
Edsel also created and helped design websites for the both the book (www.rescuingdavinci.com) and the film (www.therapeofeuropa.com). The Rescuing Da Vinci website was recognized by www.coolhomepages.com as the “Site of the Week” and was also named a top 10 Education Oriented site from user reviews and ratings and a top 10 Flash site from user reviews and ratings. Additionally, Edsel created a blog on which he writes daily entries on subjects of interest including art, life, and heroes.
Future Projects
Edsel and his team of researchers are accurately assembling the most comprehensive list of Allied heroes – known as “Monument Men” – who risked their lives to save many of the western world’s greatest artistic treasures. Not only focusing on their role during World War II, this effort highlights their contributions to building postwar cultural America. Edsel is also working with a member of Congress to develop a Congressional Resolution that formally recognizes and honors the Monument Men’s invaluable role during World War II.
Edsel is also amidst the creation of the “Monuments Men Library Project,” which will ensure placement of Rescuing Da Vinci in the permanent collections of each and every library in the United States. This initiative has as its objective immortal recognition of the Monuments Men and their incredible contribution to world culture throughout World War II and the years that follow.
Community Service
Edsel has been a supporter and presence within the Children’s Medical Center, the Dallas Morning News Charities, and the United Way, amongst others. He dedicated nine years to service as a Trustee of St. Mark’s School of Texas, as Chairman of the Development Committee, a member of the Executive Committee and as President of the St. Mark’s Alumni Board (1987-1991). During his last two years of working with the School, Edsel developed the foundation for a capital campaign which has since raised more than $50,000,000. He has also served on the Board of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation (Dallas Chapter), the Advisory Board of St. Philip’s School and Community Center, and as a volunteer at the Union Gospel Mission.
Edsel founded the Cochran Chapel Homeowners Association in Dallas in 1993, serving as its President for the first three years. He is also a founding Trustee of Friends of Florence and served as its Vice President for its first two years.
Additionally, in 2003, Edsel served as Chairman of a committee working to develop a master plan for the Turtle Creek corridor in Dallas. In February 2004, the Committee gifted the master plan to the City of Dallas. It now serves as the City’s master plan for the Turtle Creek greenbelt. Edsel also serves on the Advisory Board of the Meadows Museum of Art, Dallas. In 2004, Edsel became a Board Member of the American Friends of the Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg, Russia.
Other Activities
Edsel has served as a director of Polaris Minerals Corporation, a Vancouver-based company, since July 2002. Polaris Minerals exclusively focuses on supplying construction aggregates from its two properties located on tidewater on the coast of Vancouver Island, British Columbia, to coastal urban markets on the western seaboard of North America. He is also a member of the Compensation Committee and Corporate Governance Committee.
