Arthur Kingsley Porter

Description

Arthur Kingsley Porter (1883-1933) was born in Darien (Connecticut) into a wealthy family. He studied law at Yale University and architecture at Columbia University. He worked as a professor of art history at Yale University and, although he offered to finance a department dedicated to his field, the university rejected his proposal. Frustrated by the refusal, Porter left his job and went to France to carry out restoration initiatives in the country. In the 1920s he began working as a professor at Harvard University, a position he held until 1933, when he disappeared during a storm on Inishbofin, an island in County Donegal, Ireland. He was a member of the Medieval Academy of America, the Archaeological Institute of America, the Irish Society of Antiquaries and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. He wrote Sculpture of the Pilgrimage Roads, ten volumes bringing together data on architecture and sculpture, as well as images he had made himself. During his travels he had the opportunity to acquire very valuable art objects, forming a very varied collection.