Thea Westreich Wagner

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Thea Westreich Wagner (born 1942) is a

Whitney Museum of American Art in New York and the Centre Pompidou in Paris.[2][3]

Life

Washington, D.C.

Thea Westreich Wagner lived in the

Phillips Collection; Wagner audited classes in art history.[1] Additionally, Wagner found early inspiration and influence in D.C. art dealer Ramon Osuna, who personally introduced Wagner to artists, an experience Wagner found "stimulating."[1]

Wagner worked as a docent at the

National Museum of American Art, further immersing herself in the D.C. art world.[1] During this time, she also got to know Walter Hopps, the director of the Washington D.C. based Corcoran Gallery of Art. Hopps encouraged Wagner to look at art with an open mind.[1]

Wagner received additional first hand art exposure when she and her first husband commissioned Alice Neel to paint a family portrait of their family and Philip Pearlstein to paint a portrait of her and her husband.[1] The portrait sittings required spending time in each artists’ studios.[1] Wagner found the firsthand experience in the studios inspiring. She especially enjoyed getting to see how the artists went about their practices.[1] In the early 70s, alongside the founding of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Wagner was very involved in the performing arts, actively working with the American Ballet Theatre and the Kennedy Center.[1] She befriended many performers, choreographers, and set designers; finding the experience of being at rehearsal "much like being in an artist's studio."[1]

In the 70s, Wagner worked for

Paula Cooper, Ivan Karp, Ileana Sonnabend, Antonio Homem, and Leo Castelli.[1]

After working at Bloomingdale's, Wagner, with the assistance of

Livingston Biddle the then head of the NEA, was hired to work assisting emerging visual and performing artists qualify for NEA grants.[1]

Thea Westreich Art Advisory Services opened in 1987.[4]

New York City

In 1987, Wagner moved to New York and opened an advisory office in

SoHo.[1] At the time, there weren't many art advisory businesses.[1] Originally geared towards the performing arts, Wagner shifted her focus toward fine art when clients started asking her to assist in building their collections.[1]

Art collection

Thea Westreich met Ethan Wagner in the early 1990s.

art collection.[3]

The Thea Westreich and Ethan Wager Collection

In 2013, Thea and Ethan decided to donate their extensive collection of

Napoleon Bonaparte, the Legion of Honor is France’s highest award.[7]

Artists in the Thea Westreich and Ethan Wager Collection

Charline von Heyl, Anne Collier, Liz Deschenes, Hito Steyerl, Marc-Camille Chaimowicz, Robert Gober, Bernadette Corporation, Jeff Koons, Sam Lewitt, Sol LeWitt, Cady Noland, Richard Prince, Rirkrit Tiravanija, David Wojnarowicz, Christopher Wool, Robert Adams, Diane Arbus, Lee Friedlander, Eileen Quinlan, and many others.[2]

References

  1. ^
    ISBN 9780300214826
    .
  2. ^ a b c d "Collected by Thea Westreich Wagner and Ethan Wagner". whitney.org.
  3. ^
    ISSN 0362-4331
    . Retrieved 2019-05-13.
  4. ^ Brainard, Carey (29 March 2016). "Thea Westreich Wagner and Ethan Wagner". Interviews from Yale University Radio WYBCX.
  5. ^ "France Honors Thea Westreich Wagner and Ethan Wagner". frenchculture.org.
  6. ^ "La Collection Théa Westreich Wagner et Ethan Wagner | Boutique du Centre Pompidou". boutique.centrepompidou.fr. Retrieved 2019-05-14.
  7. ^ "France Honors Collectors Thea Westreich Wagner and Ethan Wagner and Curator Charlotte Vignon". www.artforum.com.
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