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Frick Collection
The Frick Collection (colloquially known as the Frick) is an art museum on the Upper East Side of Manhattan in New York City. It was established in 1935 to preserve the collection of the industrialist Henry Clay Frick. The collection consists of 14th- to 19th-century European paintings, as well as other pieces of European fine and decorative art. It is located at the Henry Clay Frick House, a Beaux-Arts mansion designed for Henry Clay Frick. The Frick also houses the Frick Art Research Library, an art history research center established by Frick's daughter Helen Clay Frick in 1920, which contains sales catalogs, books, periodicals, and photographs.
The museum dates to 1920, when the trustees of Frick's estate formed the Frick Collection Inc. to care for his art collection, which he had bequeathed for public use. After Frick's wife Adelaide Frick died in 1931, John Russell Pope converted the Frick House into a museum, which opened on December 16, 1935. The museum acquired additional works of art over the years, and it expanded the house in 1977 to accommodate increasing visitation. Following fundraising campaigns in the 2000s, a further expansion was announced in the 2010s. From 2021 until March 2024, during the renovation of the Frick House, the Frick Madison operated at 945 Madison Avenue. The Frick House reopened in April 2025.
The Frick has about 1,500 pieces in its collection as of 2021. Artists with works in the collection include Bellini, Fragonard, Gainsborough, Goya, Holbein, Rembrandt, Titian, Turner, Velázquez, Vermeer, and Whistler. The museum has gradually acquired additional pieces over the years to supplement the paintings in Frick's original collection. In addition to its permanent collection, the museum has hosted small temporary exhibitions on narrowly defined topics, as well as academic symposiums, concerts, and classes. The Frick Collection typically has up to 300,000 visitors annually and has an endowment fund to support its programming. Commentary on the museum over the years has been largely positive, particularly in relation to the works themselves and their juxtaposition with the Frick House.
Henry Clay Frick was a coke and steel magnate. As early as 1870, he had hung pictures throughout his house in Broadford, Pennsylvania. Frick acquired the first painting in his permanent collection, Luis Jiménez's In the Louvre, in 1880, after moving to Pittsburgh. He did not begin buying paintings in large numbers until the mid-1890s, and he began devoting significant amounts of time to his collection. This made Frick one of several prominent American businessmen who also collected art, along with figures such as Henry Havemeyer and J. P. Morgan. In explaining why he collected art, Frick said, "I can make money... I cannot make pictures." He curated his collection with the help of Joseph Duveen, 1st Baron Duveen.
When the Frick family moved from Pittsburgh to New York City in 1905, they leased the William H. Vanderbilt House at 640 Fifth Avenue, and Frick expanded his collection during that time. The collection was spread across their homes in New York, Pennsylvania, and Massachusetts. Thomas Hastings of Carrère and Hastings designed Frick's permanent house at 1 East 70th Street, which was completed in 1914. The house had been designed with the collection in mind. James Howard Bridge, Frick's personal assistant, was hired as the house's curator in 1914 and worked at the house for fourteen years. Frick, who was known for being especially particular in his tastes, spent an estimated $10 million to acquire pieces during his lifetime. Duveen opened four art-purchasing accounts for Frick, including two accounts specifically for art from Morgan's estate.
Frick died in 1919 at the age of 69, bequeathing the house as a public museum for his art collection. His widow Adelaide Howard Childs Frick continued living in the mansion with her daughter Helen; if Adelaide died or moved away, the house would be converted to a public museum. At the time, the collection alone was worth $30 million, and Frick also provided a $15 million endowment for the maintenance of the collection. Nine people, including Adelaide, Helen, and Helen's brother Childs, were named as trustees of his estate; Childs served as the head of the Frick estate's board of trustees until his death in 1965. Per the terms of Frick's will, the trustees moved to incorporate Frick's art collection in April 1920, submitting articles of incorporation to the New York state government. The Frick Collection Inc. was incorporated that month.
The New York and Pennsylvania state governments fought over which government should collect taxes from Frick's estate. Amid this dispute, the collection was reassessed at $13 million in 1921; this figure was repeated in a revised appraisal of Frick's estate that was filed with the New York state government in 1923. Meanwhile, Helen Frick studied plans for the Witt Library in London in the early 1920s, as she wanted to create a library for Frick's personal collection. Helen catalogued most of the collection over the next decade. The Frick Art Research Library, originally named the Frick Art Reference Library, was organized at the mansion after Frick's death, and a dedicated library building opened the next year. During the 1920s, the library added thousands of volumes and photographs to its holdings. Over the years, four additional trustees had to be appointed after their predecessors died.
After Adelaide Frick's death in October 1931, the trustees were finally allowed to open the house to the public; they announced in January 1933 that the collection would likely open to the public within a year. John Russell Pope was hired to alter and enlarge the house. Frederick Mortimer Clapp, who had joined the Frick Collection as an advisor in 1931, was hired as the museum's first director. Work on the mansion began in December 1933. A new library wing was constructed on 71st Street to replace the original library. Other modifications included a new storage vault and renovations of the Frick family's living space. The museum's opening, originally scheduled for 1934, was postponed because of the complexity of the construction project. The Frick estate also sued the city government in 1935 to obtain a property-tax exemption for the museum, and the taxes were waived the next year, as the Frick Collection was a public museum.
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Frick Collection
The Frick Collection (colloquially known as the Frick) is an art museum on the Upper East Side of Manhattan in New York City. It was established in 1935 to preserve the collection of the industrialist Henry Clay Frick. The collection consists of 14th- to 19th-century European paintings, as well as other pieces of European fine and decorative art. It is located at the Henry Clay Frick House, a Beaux-Arts mansion designed for Henry Clay Frick. The Frick also houses the Frick Art Research Library, an art history research center established by Frick's daughter Helen Clay Frick in 1920, which contains sales catalogs, books, periodicals, and photographs.
The museum dates to 1920, when the trustees of Frick's estate formed the Frick Collection Inc. to care for his art collection, which he had bequeathed for public use. After Frick's wife Adelaide Frick died in 1931, John Russell Pope converted the Frick House into a museum, which opened on December 16, 1935. The museum acquired additional works of art over the years, and it expanded the house in 1977 to accommodate increasing visitation. Following fundraising campaigns in the 2000s, a further expansion was announced in the 2010s. From 2021 until March 2024, during the renovation of the Frick House, the Frick Madison operated at 945 Madison Avenue. The Frick House reopened in April 2025.
The Frick has about 1,500 pieces in its collection as of 2021. Artists with works in the collection include Bellini, Fragonard, Gainsborough, Goya, Holbein, Rembrandt, Titian, Turner, Velázquez, Vermeer, and Whistler. The museum has gradually acquired additional pieces over the years to supplement the paintings in Frick's original collection. In addition to its permanent collection, the museum has hosted small temporary exhibitions on narrowly defined topics, as well as academic symposiums, concerts, and classes. The Frick Collection typically has up to 300,000 visitors annually and has an endowment fund to support its programming. Commentary on the museum over the years has been largely positive, particularly in relation to the works themselves and their juxtaposition with the Frick House.
Henry Clay Frick was a coke and steel magnate. As early as 1870, he had hung pictures throughout his house in Broadford, Pennsylvania. Frick acquired the first painting in his permanent collection, Luis Jiménez's In the Louvre, in 1880, after moving to Pittsburgh. He did not begin buying paintings in large numbers until the mid-1890s, and he began devoting significant amounts of time to his collection. This made Frick one of several prominent American businessmen who also collected art, along with figures such as Henry Havemeyer and J. P. Morgan. In explaining why he collected art, Frick said, "I can make money... I cannot make pictures." He curated his collection with the help of Joseph Duveen, 1st Baron Duveen.
When the Frick family moved from Pittsburgh to New York City in 1905, they leased the William H. Vanderbilt House at 640 Fifth Avenue, and Frick expanded his collection during that time. The collection was spread across their homes in New York, Pennsylvania, and Massachusetts. Thomas Hastings of Carrère and Hastings designed Frick's permanent house at 1 East 70th Street, which was completed in 1914. The house had been designed with the collection in mind. James Howard Bridge, Frick's personal assistant, was hired as the house's curator in 1914 and worked at the house for fourteen years. Frick, who was known for being especially particular in his tastes, spent an estimated $10 million to acquire pieces during his lifetime. Duveen opened four art-purchasing accounts for Frick, including two accounts specifically for art from Morgan's estate.
Frick died in 1919 at the age of 69, bequeathing the house as a public museum for his art collection. His widow Adelaide Howard Childs Frick continued living in the mansion with her daughter Helen; if Adelaide died or moved away, the house would be converted to a public museum. At the time, the collection alone was worth $30 million, and Frick also provided a $15 million endowment for the maintenance of the collection. Nine people, including Adelaide, Helen, and Helen's brother Childs, were named as trustees of his estate; Childs served as the head of the Frick estate's board of trustees until his death in 1965. Per the terms of Frick's will, the trustees moved to incorporate Frick's art collection in April 1920, submitting articles of incorporation to the New York state government. The Frick Collection Inc. was incorporated that month.
The New York and Pennsylvania state governments fought over which government should collect taxes from Frick's estate. Amid this dispute, the collection was reassessed at $13 million in 1921; this figure was repeated in a revised appraisal of Frick's estate that was filed with the New York state government in 1923. Meanwhile, Helen Frick studied plans for the Witt Library in London in the early 1920s, as she wanted to create a library for Frick's personal collection. Helen catalogued most of the collection over the next decade. The Frick Art Research Library, originally named the Frick Art Reference Library, was organized at the mansion after Frick's death, and a dedicated library building opened the next year. During the 1920s, the library added thousands of volumes and photographs to its holdings. Over the years, four additional trustees had to be appointed after their predecessors died.
After Adelaide Frick's death in October 1931, the trustees were finally allowed to open the house to the public; they announced in January 1933 that the collection would likely open to the public within a year. John Russell Pope was hired to alter and enlarge the house. Frederick Mortimer Clapp, who had joined the Frick Collection as an advisor in 1931, was hired as the museum's first director. Work on the mansion began in December 1933. A new library wing was constructed on 71st Street to replace the original library. Other modifications included a new storage vault and renovations of the Frick family's living space. The museum's opening, originally scheduled for 1934, was postponed because of the complexity of the construction project. The Frick estate also sued the city government in 1935 to obtain a property-tax exemption for the museum, and the taxes were waived the next year, as the Frick Collection was a public museum.