Lorraine Waxman Pearce

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Lorraine Waxman Pearce in the 1960s

Lorraine Waxman Pearce, sometimes known as Lorraine Pearce, (April 14, 1934 – March 14, 2017) was a decorative arts scholar and the inaugural White House art curator, key to the Kennedy restoration of the White House.[1][2]

Subsequent to her hiring by

Jacqueline Kennedy in 1961,[3] Pearce wrote the first guide that covered the White House's historic furnishings, which included George Washington's mirror, a chair from Lincoln's bedroom, a sofa attributed to Dolley Madison and items from John Tyler.[1][4]

Pearce was a 1955 graduate of

Winterthur Museum and the University of Delaware.[5][6] While at Winterthur where she worked as a registrar,[7] she became known for her scholarship on the French impact on American arts.[8] Henry Francis du Pont, the museum founder and chairman of the White House Fine Arts Committee, recommended Pearce for the curator role.[1]

Pearce resigned as curator in 1962 and spent much of the rest of her life in arts education.[3][1][5]

References

  1. ^
    ISSN 0362-4331
    . Retrieved 2022-02-16.
  2. .
  3. ^ .
  4. ^ Pearce, Lorraine Waxman (1962). The White House: An Historical Guide. White House Historical Association.
  5. ^ a b "LORRAINE PEARCE Obituary (2017) The Washington Post". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2022-02-16.
  6. ^ "The woman who furnished camelot (Sum 94)". www1.udel.edu. University of Delaware. Retrieved 2022-02-16.
  7. ^ "A True Tour de Force". Winterthur Museum, Garden & Library. 2022-02-07. Retrieved 2022-02-16.
  8. ^ Waxman, Lorraine; Pearce, Lorraine Waxman (1958). French Influence on American Decorative Arts of the Early Nineteenth Century: The Work of Charles-Honoré Lannuier. University of Delaware.