Kathleen Adair Foster is an American art historian, critic, and curator. Since 2002 she has served as the Robert L. McNeil, Jr., Senior Curator and Director of the Center for American Art at the Philadelphia Museum of Art. From 1989 - 2002 she served as Senior Research Scholar and Class of 1949 Curator of Western Art at the Eskenazi Museum of Art. From 1979-1989 she worked at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, departing as Chief Curator and Director of Research and Publications.Foster, Kathleen Adair. January 30, 2019. “Dr. Kathleen Adair Foster, Philadelphia Museum of Art.” Smarthistory. Accessed June 25, 2025. https://smarthistory.org/author/dr-kathleen-adair-foster/.
The author of more than a dozen books, Foster's publications include American Watercolor in the Age of Homer and Sargent (Yale University Press, 2017), Shipwreck! Winslow Homer and “The Life Line” (Yale University Press, 2012), and Thomas Chambers: American Marine and Landscape Painter, 1808-1869 (Yale University Press, 2008), among others.Yale University Press. “Books by Kathleen A. Foster.” Yale University Press. Accessed June 25, 2025. https://yalebooks.yale.edu/search-results/?contributor=Kathleen%20A.%20Foster Throughout her career, she has held teaching positions at Williams College, Temple University, Indiana University Bloomington, and the University of Pennsylvania. In 2015 Foster was made an Edmond J. Safra Professor at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C.National Gallery of Art. n.d. “Edmond J. Safra Visiting Professors.” National Gallery of Art. Accessed June 25, 2025. https://www.nga.gov/research/center/former-members/edmond-j-safra-visiting-professors
Biography Foster received her B.A. in Art History from Wellesley College and her M.A., M.Phil, and Ph.D. in the History of Art from Yale University. Throughout her graduate studies, she served as a Teaching Fellow and Curatorial Assistant at the Yale University Art Gallery.University of Pennsylvania, School of Arts & Sciences. “Kathy Foster in the Philadelphia Inquirer.” History of Art News, March 2, 2017. Accessed June 25, 2025. https://arth.sas.upenn.edu/news/kathy-foster-philadelphia-inquirer
From 1975-1976 Foster served as Assistant Professor of Art History and Studio Art at Williams College. From 1976-1979 she served as an Assistant Professor in the Tyler School of Art and Architecture at Temple University. In 1979 Foster joined the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts as an Assistant Curator, rising the ranks of Associate Curator, Curator, and eventually Chief Curator and Director of Research & Publications. During this period she also served as a Visiting Lecturer in the History of Art Department at the University of Pennsylvania.Foster, Kathleen A. "Curriculum Vitae." Accessed June 25, 2025. PDF hosted by the University of Pennsylvania, School of Arts & Sciences. https://arth.sas.upenn.edu/sites/default/files/Foster%20VITA%207-2015.pdf
Foster would depart P.A.F.A. in 1989 to join the full-time Art History faculty at Indiana University Bloomington, where she jointly served as Class of 1949 Curator of Western Art at the Eskenazi Museum of Art. In 2002 she would accept the position of Robert L. McNeil, Jr., Senior Curator of American Art at Philadelphia Museum of Art, where she concurrently serves as Director of the Center for American Art.
Across multiple institutions, Foster’s work has focused on how American art—specifically from the 19th century—has shaped and reflected the cultural landscape of the nation. Her scholarship has paid particular attention to landscape painting, often emphasizing the work of Thomas Eakins, Winslow Homer, and the Hudson River School.Scherer, Barrymore Laurence. “American Watercolor in the Age of Homer and Sargent.” Wall Street Journal. March 7th, 2017. https://www.wsj.com/articles/american-watercolor-in-the-age-of-homer-and-sargent-review-1488404290?gaa_at=eafs …
A prolific author of art history and criticism, Foster's book-length publications include American Watercolor in the Age of Homer and Sargent (2017), Shipwreck! Winslow Homer and "The Life Line (2012), Thomas Chambers: American Marine and Landscape Painter, 1808-1869 (2008), Captain Watson's Travels in America: The Sketchbooks and Diary of Joshua Rowley Watson, 1771-1818 (1997), and Writing About Eakins: The Manuscripts in Charles Bregler's Thomas Eakins Collection (1989). Additional works as co-author include, In a New Light: Alice Schille and the American Water Color Movement (2019), Romancing the West: Alfred Jacob Miller in the Bank of America Collection (2010), and American Art in the Princeton University Art Museum: Volume 1: Drawings and Watercolors (2004).
Throughout her career, Foster has been the recipient of numerous awards and fellowships, including seven bursaries from the National Endowment for the Arts, as well as five bursaries from the National Endowment for the Humanities. In 2001 she was named a Whitney Fellow at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. In 2002 she was made a Visiting Research Fellow at the Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington, D.C. In 2005 she was named the Wyeth Foundation Lecturer at National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. Ten years later, in 2015 Foster was made an Edmond J. Safra Visiting Professor at the National Gallery of Art.
Foster previously served on the Editorial Board of American Art Review, and has been an editorial reviewer for University of Pennsylvania Press (2003); Princeton University Press (2004); Penn State University Press (2005); American Art (2009), Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin (2011); and University of Chicago Press (2014). Additionally she has served as a grant reviewer for the National Endowment for the Humanities (1999) the J. Paul Getty Trust (2000), and the Terra Foundation for American Art (2010-2019).
Publications Books & Catalogs In a New Light: Alice Schille and the American Water Color Movement (Columbus Museum of Art, 2019)Foster, Kathleen A., Tara R. Keny, James M. Keny, and Nannette V. Maciejunes. In a New Light: Alice Schille and the American Watercolor Movement. Columbus, OH: Columbus Museum of Art, 2019. American Watercolor in the Age of Homer and Sargent (Yale University Press, 2017)Foster, Kathleen A. American Watercolor in the Age of Homer and Sargent. Philadelphia and New Haven: Philadelphia Museum of Art and Yale University Press, 2017. Shipwreck! Winslow Homer and "The Life Line" (Yale University Press, 2012)Foster, Kathleen A. Shipwreck! Winslow Homer and “The Life Line”. Philadelphia: Philadelphia Museum of Art in association with Yale University Press, 2012. An Eakins Masterpiece Restored: Seeing “The Gross Clinic” Anew (Yale University Press, 2012)Foster, Kathleen A., and Mark S. Tucker, eds. An Eakins Masterpiece Restored: Seeing “The Gross Clinic” Anew. Philadelphia: Philadelphia Museum of Art in association with Yale University Press, 2012. Romancing the West: Alfred Jacob Miller in the Bank of America Collection (University of Washington Press, 2010)Conrads, Margaret C., et al. Romancing the West: Alfred Jacob Miller in the Bank of America Collection. Kansas City, MO: Nelson‑Atkins Museum of Art, 2010. Thomas Chambers: American Marine and Landscape Painter, 1808-1869 (Yale University Press, 2008)Foster, Kathleen A. Thomas Chambers: American Marine and Landscape Painter, 1808–1869. Philadelphia: Philadelphia Museum of Art in association with Yale University Press, 2008. A Drawing Manual by Thomas Eakins (Philadelphia Museum of Art & Yale University Press, 2005)Eakins, Thomas. A Drawing Manual. Edited by Kathleen A. Foster. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2005. American Art in the Princeton University Art Museum: Volume 1: Drawings and Watercolors (Princeton University Art Museum & Yale University Press, 2004)Wilmerding, John, et all. American Art in the Princeton University Art Museum: Volume 1: Drawings and Watercolors. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Art Museum in association with Yale University Press, 2004. Thomas Hart Benton and the Indiana Murals (Indiana University Press, 2000)Foster, Kathleen A., Nanette Esseck Brewer, and Margaret Contompasis. Thomas Hart Benton and the Indiana Murals. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 2001. American Watercolors at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, (Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, 2000)Binstock, Jonathan P., and Kathleen A. Foster. American Watercolors at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. Philadelphia: Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, 2000. Thomas Eakins Rediscovered: Charles Bregler's Thomas Eakins Collection at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, (Yale University Press, 1997)Foster, Kathleen A. Thomas Eakins Rediscovered: Charles Bregler's Thomas Eakins Collection at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1997. Captain Watson's Travels in America: The Sketchbooks and Diary of Joshua Rowley Watson, 1771-1818 (University of Pennsylvania Press, 1997)Foster, Kathleen A. Captain Watson’s Travels in America: The Sketchbooks and Diary of Joshua Rowley Watson, 1772–1818. With commentaries by Kenneth Finkel. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1997. An American Picture-Gallery: Recent Giſts from Morton C. Bradley, Jr. (Eskenazi Museum of Art, 1992)Foster, Kathleen A., and Nanette Esseck Brewer. An American Picture‑Gallery: Recent Gifts from Morton C. Bradley, Jr. Bloomington: Indiana University Art Museum, 1992. Writing About Eakins: The Manuscripts in Charles Bregler's Thomas Eakins Collection (University of Pennsylvania Press, 1989)Foster, Kathleen A., and Cheryl Leibold, eds. Writing About Eakins: The Manuscripts in Charles Bregler’s Thomas Eakins Collection. Philadelphia: Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts and University of Pennsylvania Press, 1989. Daniel Garber (Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, 1980)Foster, Kathleen A. Daniel Garber. Philadelphia: Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, 1980. Edwin Austin Abbey, 1852-1911 (Yale University Art Gallery, 1973)Foster, Kathleen A., and Michael Quick. Edwin Austin Abbey (1852–1911). New Haven: Yale University Art Gallery, 1973.
Essays (selected) “A Research Portal for American Watercolors, Prints, and Drawings 1850–1925: A Source for Obscure Catalogues, Artists’ Societies, and Women Artists,” Panorama: Journal of the Association of Historians of American Art. Vol. 7, no. 1 (Spring 2021).Foster, Kathleen A. 2021. “A Research Portal for American Watercolors, Prints, and Drawings 1850–1925: A Source for Obscure Catalogues, Artists’ Societies, and Women Artists.” Panorama: Journal of the Association of Historians of American Art Vol. 7, no. 1 (Spring). https://journalpanorama.org/article/a-research-portal/ “American Watercolor in the Age of Homer and Sargent,” American Art Review, vol. XXIX (Feb. 2017).Foster, Kathleen A. “American Watercolor in the Age of Homer and Sargent,” American Art Review, vol. XXIX (Feb. 2017). “Women and Watercolor,” The Magazine Antiques, March/April 2017, pp. 84-91.Foster, Kathleen A. 2017. “Women and Watercolor.” The Magazine Antiques, March 21, 2017. Accessed June 25, 2025. https://www.themagazineantiques.com/article/women-and-watercolor/ “Looking for Thomas Eakins,” Blackwell’s Companion to American Art (London: Wiley-Blackwell, 2015), pp. 146-166.Davis, John, Jennifer A. Greenhill, and Jason D. Grant, eds. 2015. A Companion to American Art. Malden, MA: Wiley‑Blackwell. Accessed June 25, 2025. https://yalebooks.yale.edu/search-results/?contributor=Kathleen%20A.%20Foster “Winslow Homer’s The Life Line, A Narrative of Gender and Modernity,” The Magazine Antiques, Sept. /Oct. 2012, pp. 110-117.Foster, Kathleen A. “Winslow Homer’s The Life Line.” The Magazine Antiques. Accessed June 25, 2025. https://www.themagazineantiques.com/article/winslow-homers-the-life-line/