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On November 20, 2004,
the Rosenbach Museum & Library presented Jill and Sheldon Bonovitz
with an award at the annual Rosenbacchanal gala fundraiser. The
honor recognizes the couple's passion for collecting in innovative
areas and their desire to encourage public access to their collection,
traits that evoke the spirit of the brothers who founded the Rosenbach
in 1954.
In the first half of the 20th century,
brothers Philip H. and A.S.W. Rosenbach helped clients such as J.P.
Morgan and Henry Clay Folger build private libraries that have since
become some of the most important public institutions in the United
States. Collectors themselves, the Rosenbach brothers had a gift
for finding items that were not yet recognized as "collectible,"
such as the manuscript for James Joyce's Ulysses, which
the brothers purchased in 1924, long before Joyce's reputation was
established. Created in 1954 when the brothers left their considerable
collection in public trust, the Rosenbach Museum & Library is
now recognized as one of the world's finest repositories of rare
books and manuscripts, with particular strengths in American history
and English literature.
A modern parallel to the Rosenbach
brothers, the Bonovitzes began collecting the work of self-taught
American artists of the 20th century long before there were comparable
collections, guided only by their passion for the work. In the meantime,
self-taught (or "outsider") art has come to be widely
recognized and is featured in many museum collections. The Bonovitz
collection now includes artists such as William Edmondson, Bill
Traylor, Martin Ramirez, Howard Finster, James Castle and Sister
Gertrude Morgan.
Jill F. Bonovitz is a nationally recognized
ceramicist. Sheldon M. Bonovitz is Chairman and CEO of the Philadelphia
law firm Duane Morris LLP. Both are active supporters of the arts
community and charitable institutions around the city.
A Passionate Eye: The Bonovitz Collection of
Self-Taught Artists of the 20th Century was on display
at the Rosenbach Museum and Library through January 27, 2005. |
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This exhibition has been
made possible by the subscribers to the 2004 Rosenbacchanal.
Particular thanks are due to: Assemblage, Inc. and the Fleisher-Ollman
Gallery
Major funding for operations and programs is
provided, in part, by the Berwind Group, the Christian
R. and Mary F. Lindback Foundation, the Pennsylvania Historical
and Museum Commission, the Pew
Charitable Trusts, the Philadelphia Cultural Fund, the Phoebe
W. Haas Charitable Trust, the Walter J.
Miller Foundation, the William Penn Foundation, WolfBlock LLP,
Wyeth Pharmaceuticals,
and by the Trustees and Members of the Rosenbach Museum &
Library
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