Lunch and Learn: Maryland’s Artistic Property Highlights Recent Acquisitions

Speaker: Catherine Rogers Arthur, Senior Curator Director of Artistic Property, Maryland State Archives

The state of Maryland is fortunate to have one of the most historic collections of state-owned art in the nation. It dates from 1774 when the portrait of William Pitt, Earl of Chatham was presented to the state by Charles Willson Peale. Since 1969, with the creation of the Commission on Artistic Property, the collection has been overseen by the Archives. The collection includes paintings, sculptures, decorative arts, and works on paper dating from the thirteenth century to the present and is rich in portraiture of Maryland governors, legislators, and first ladies. Many of these works of art are displayed in the Maryland State House, Government House, and other legislative buildings throughout the Annapolis complex. The Peabody Art Collection, acquired by the state in 1996, added additional works by renowned artists.

Recent acquisitions help expand the breadth of the collection in terms of date range and diversity, as well as historic treasures received as gifts. Recent conservation projects have allowed for the display of things that haven’t been seen by the public in decades.

Catherine Rogers Arthur, Senior Curator Director of Artistic Property, will present Maryland’s Artistic Property, Highlights Recent Acquisitions an illustrated lecture; a virtual tour of Maryland’s Treasures of State