Frederic Allen Whiting (1873–1959) was a philanthropist and museum director. Whiting acted as an advocate for education and pioneer for public outreach, and was known for his prolific career in the museum world, most notably as the founding director of the Cleveland Museum of Art (1913–30) and later the president of the American Federation of Arts (1930–36).
Early life
On January 26, 1873, Frederic Allen Whiting was born in Oakdale, Tennessee to Frederic and Catherine Allen Whiting. The Whiting family originally hailed from Massachusetts, but the patriarch's work as the president of an iron company led the Whitings first to Tennessee and, later, to New Jersey, throughout the young Whiting's childhood. Apart from a few years in grammar school, Whiting had no formal education; he received his schooling primarily through tutoring at home.
When Whiting was seventeen, the Whiting family moved to Lowell, Massachusetts, a town primarily fueled by its industry in textile manufacturing. Active in both his local church and community, Whiting initially planned to enter the ministry. Ultimately, however, his poor eyesight dissuaded him from pursuing this career.Bruce Robertson, "Frederic A. Whiting: Founding the Museum with Art and Craft," in Object Lessons: Cleveland Creates an Art Museum, ed. Evan H. Turner (Cleveland: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1991), 32. Soon after, Whiting entered into business, following the lead of his father and brothers. Although the Whitings remained in Lowell for just five years before moving closer to Boston in 1895, the blue-collar mill town had a lasting impact on Whiting, who remained there until 1897. The textile mills in Lowell attracted both migrant workers and European immigrants who were largely exploited as unskilled laborers. Whiting's early exposure to the harsh realities of industrial America developed his strong sense of civic duty and commitment to education. Demonstrating an early interest in community service, he began serving as treasurer of a charitable organization connected to his church, the Unity Congregational Church of Lowell. Whiting would later comment, "I think the most important factor was the social work in the mill town of Lowell, where I…spent a good deal of time in club work with mill boys." His charitable work in Lowell continued to influence his conception of community and commitment to service throughout his life. Furthermore, these principles informed his later beliefs about the role that museums should play in their local communities, as evidenced by his tenure at The Cleveland Museum of Art.
Career
Arts and Crafts Movement Whiting's passions for education and art, namely the Arts and Crafts and handiwork, came together while he worked to establish himself as a leader in the arts community. With a career that started in business, he made an early transition into the world of art after meeting C. Howard Walker (1857–1936) of The Society of Arts and Crafts of Boston on a ship bound for England in 1898. A friendship was struck, and two years later Walker offered Whiting the paid position as secretary to the Society of Arts and Crafts, Boston.The Encyclopedia of Cleveland History, "Frederic Allen Whiting," Case Western Reserve University, last modified July 23, 1997, accessed September 1, 2015, https://ech.case.edu/cgi/article.pl?id=WFA. The society was an outgrowth of European societies much like the one founded by William Morris to encourage craftsmanship despite the industrial age. Whiting remained in this position for 12 years, establishing himself as a national advocate for industrial and decorative art objects, craftworks, and public education.
Whiting's personal interest in handiwork was prioritized in both of his professional careers in arts institutions and in his personal life as well. Whiting organized the literary journal Handicraft, published for the first time by The Society of Arts and Crafts, Boston in 1902.Barbara D. Aikens and Wendy Bruton, "A Finding Aid to the American Federation of Arts Records, 1895-1993 (bulk 1909-1969), in the Archives of American Art" The Smithsonian Institution Archives of American Art, 2000, Accessed September 1, 2015, https://www.aaa.si.edu/collections/american-federation-arts-records-5411/more. He served as the original editor for the publication, which had a clear focus on educating its audience and connecting its community by distributing essays by artists and craftsmen, advertising craft shows, and listing local lecture and demonstration opportunities.Arthur Carey, Frederic Allen Whiting, Huger Elliott, Carl Purington Rollins, Handicraft IV (Montague, Mass.: The Dyke Mill).
Whiting also founded the National League of Handicraft Societies in 1907.
Indianapolis Museum of Art Following his resignation as secretary of the Society of Arts and Crafts, Boston, Whiting officially entered the museum profession in 1912, when he accepted a position as Director of the John Herron Art Institute in Indianapolis (later known as the Indianapolis Museum of Art). By this time, he was well known within the American arts community as a vocal supporter of the Arts and Crafts movement. Although Whiting remained in Indianapolis for less than one year, many of his efforts here prefigured the innovative programs he would later institute at the Cleveland Museum of Art, including establishing a training program for museum docents and gearing public education at younger audiences. Whiting was recommended to be Director of the Cleveland Museum of Art, through a personal connection, Lockwood de Forest, brother to the Metropolitan Museum of Art's president, Robert W. DeForest.Bruce Robertson, "Frederic A. Whiting: Founding the Museum with Art and Craft," in Object Lessons: Cleveland Creates an Art Museum, ed. Evan H. Turner (Cleveland: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1991), 35.
Cleveland Museum of Art
The earliest years of the Cleveland Museum of Art (known colloquially as "CMA") involved a very intimate group of people, mostly executors named by the wills of Horace Kelley and John Huntington. Having garnered both favor and respect among his colleagues while serving as Secretary of the Society of Arts and Crafts, Boston and as Director in Indianapolis, Whiting was positioned as a leading candidate for the directorship of the newly established Cleveland Museum of Art.Bruce Robertson, "Frederic A. Whiting: Founding the Museum with Art and Craft," in Object Lessons: Cleveland Creates an Art Museum, ed. Evan H. Turner (Cleveland: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1991), 37. Dictionary of Art Historians, "Whiting, Frederic Allen," Art History Webmasters Association (AHWA), accessed September 5, 2015, https://arthistorians.info/whitingf. At a meeting on December 15, 1913, after serving only a few short months as the president of the board of trustees to the CMA, the board hired its first salaried staff member, unanimously appointing Whiting as the museum's first director. With Whiting's position secured, the museum could solidify its goals and mission. Twelve members of the Board of Trustees were acknowledged in the first museum bulletin, issued in April 1914. By July of the same year, this number had already begun to swell in order to accommodate the rapidly growing project.Five officers: President, two Vice Presidents, Treasurer, Secretary, seven other trustees, and the director. The Cleveland Museum of Art, The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art, vol 1 (Cleveland: Cleveland Museum of Art, 1914).
Whiting's plans for the Cleveland Museum of Art centered on his life's mission: education.Dictionary of Art Historians, "Whiting, Frederic Allen," Art History Webmasters Association (AHWA), accessed September 1, 2015, https://arthistorians.info/whitingf. The collection that developed in the earliest stages of the CMA's founding included art that was considered to be accessible, relevant, and useful to its community. According to Whiting, "Cleveland was an industrial town … [the museum] should at least reflect that if not somehow promote it."Bruce Robertson, "Frederic A. Whiting: Founding the Museum with Art and Craft," in Cleveland Creates an Art Museum (Cleveland: Cleveland Museum of Art, 1991), 38. Its purpose, in the words of the first director, "called for immediate, concrete objects."Robertson, "Frederic A. Whiting: Founding the Museum with Art and Craft," 35. Reflecting later on these early decisions in collecting and public programing, in an address to the Cleveland Conference for Educational Cooperation on April 20, 1925, Whiting explained how he believed such objects could benefit communities not only in Cleveland, but across the globe:
In considering what meaning should be given to the term "education" [we look] at the question from the standpoint of the interest of the community as a whole. It is of vital importance to the community that the members of emerging generations should be properly oriented with respect to the society of which they become a part, with respect to the natural environment in which they find themselves, with respect to themselves, their abilities and needs. It is important that these individuals be qualified for productive life. It is important that they should be enabled to draw personal joy and satisfaction from the wealth of experience which the life of the community affords. And finally, it is important that the individual as a result of his educational experience shall consciously contribute to the general welfare and betterment of his community.Donald E. Simpson, "Cultural Visionary," Cleveland Art: The Cleveland Museum of Art Members Magazine 52, no. 4 (Summer 2012): 23.
While covering geographically diverse regions, Whiting managed to comprise a museum of mostly objects. In fact, he specifically sought "objects of domestic use," as they were materials that the Cleveland people could relate to and appreciate.Robertson, 36. The 1916 inaugural collection had hundreds of vases, bowls, plates, pottery, and other objects which, during this period, were not traditionally found in major museums.The Cleveland Museum of Art, Catalogue of the Inaugural Exhibition June 6-September 20, 1916 (Cleveland: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1916). Their similarities provided a constant variable that allowed for daily-life comparisons, while their differences in design intrigued the museum goers. It is possible that Whiting sought to acquire such artifacts as he probably saw the obvious element of the handicraft in them. In many ways, the handcrafted vases of antiquity were much like the handmade goods produced in the Arts and Crafts movement.
Further insisting on the relevance of the museum to the local community, Whiting also took part in establishing the annual Cleveland May Show for craftsmen and women.The Encyclopedia of Cleveland History, "Frederic Allen Whiting." In 1914, he brought his idea to the CMA Board of Trustees, recommending the creation of "an annual exhibition of Ohio born or trained artists, to be managed by a jury and hanging committee chosen by the exhibiting artists." While the museum was initially hesitant to assume responsibility for the time and expenses involved with organizing a local arts show, Whiting convinced the Cleveland Art Association to include works by local Cleveland artists in their Fifth Spring Exhibition, and it was agreed that the event would be hosted by the Cleveland Museum of Art. Impressed with the event's success, the CMA took over the project in 1919 and organized the First Annual Exhibition of Artists, later referred to as "The May Show." The May Show continued to be a Cleveland tradition until 1993.