Sherman Lee

Sherman Emory Lee (1918–2008) was an American academic, writer, art historian, and expert on Asian art. He was Director of the Cleveland Museum of Art from 1958 to 1983.[1]

Lee earned his B.A. and M.A. at American University in Washington, D.C. He was awarded his Ph.D. at Western Reserve University in 1941.[2]

Contents

Career

In 1941, Lee was named Curator of Far Eastern Art at the Detroit Institute of Arts.[2] His museum career was interrupted by military service in World War II.[1]

He returned to the United States in 1948. He was the Associate Director of the Seattle Art Museum and he taught at the University of Washington.[2]

In 1952, Lee began work at the Cleveland Museum of Art as Chief Curator of Oriental Art. He was named Director in 1958.[1]

World War II

Lieutenant Sherman Lee was activated from the United States Naval Reserve during World War II. His naval career took a turn when he was transferred in 1946 to Monuments, Fine Arts, and Archives (MFAA) in Japan.[2] When he was discharged from the military, he continued working as a civilian in Tokyo.[1] From 1946 to 1948, he was a civilian adviser to the staff of Gen. Douglas MacArthur (Supreme Commander of the Allied Powers, also known by the acronym SCAP) on the cataloging, preserving and protection of Japanese artworks.[3] Among those serving with Lee at SCAP headquarters in Tokyo were Patrick Lennox Tierney[4] and Laurence Sickman.[5]

Legacy

According to Philippe de Montebello, director of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, Sherman Lee "carried a lot of weight in the community of museum directors. He bought in all fields, his own particularly brilliantly, but in many different fields. He really transformed the Cleveland museum from a regional museum to a major global museum."[1]

Honors

Selected works

In a statistical overview derived from writings by and about Sherman Lee, OCLC/WorldCat encompasses roughly 100+ works in 300+ publications in 8 languages and 14,000+ library holdings.[7]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ a b c d e Weber, Bruce. "Sherman Lee, Who Led Cleveland Museum, Dies at 90," New York Times. July 11, 2008.
  2. ^ a b c d e f Monuments Men Foundation: Monuments Men> Lee, Sherman E.
  3. ^ Kappes, John. "Sherman Lee, who led the Cleveland Museum of Art to global renown, dead at 90," The Plain Dealer (Cleveland). July 9, 2008.
  4. ^ Consulate General of Japan, Los Angeles: Order of the Rising Sun, Gold Rays with Neck Ribbon (3rd class).
  5. ^ Monuments Men Foundation: Monuments Men> Sickman, Maj. Laurence
  6. ^ Freer Gallery of Art. (1998). Tenth Presentation of the Charles Lang Freer Medal, Sherman E. Lee.
  7. ^ WorldCat Identities: Lee, Sherman E.

References

External links

Directors of the Cleveland Museum of Art
Whiting (1913-30) • Milliken (1930-58) • Lee 1958-83 • Turner (1983-93) • Bergman  (1993-99) • Reid (2000-05) • Rub (2006-09) • Frankin (2010-present)