Dr. Robert Savage, a Wellesley resident who retired in 2016 after a roughly 35-year career in plastic and reconstructive surgery (and teaching and writing), is dedicating his time these days to art collecting and art history. He’ll be taking part on Oct. 21 on a panel about art collecting at the 21st Anniversary Boston International Fine Art Show at the Cyclorama. We shot him a few questions about his current passion in advance of the art show.
If you’d like to interact with Dr. Savage directly on the topic of fine art, check out his Wellesley Collection Art Review blog on Facebook (you’ll need to ask to join the group).
How would you define fine art?
It is difficult to define fine art but it is usually defined as a 2-D or 3D visual art created for both aesthetic and intellectual purposes. That is ,designed for reasons of beauty, imagination and meaningfulness. For most, this includes painting, drawing, sculpture and graphics. However, it can be expanded to include photography, music, dance,
What’s your most prized art?
I love pretty much all art from antiquity to abstract expressionism, but my wheelhouse is traditional New England Realism and Impressionism.
When did you develop your interest in art and how long have you been collecting?
As a student at Wesleyan University I knew early on that my goal was to attend medical school. To that end my freshman year I was taking all the “dry” prerequisites such as physics, chemistry and calculus. The only thing that kept me sane was my art history course taught by one of those magical teachers, Sam Green, who also wrote the definitive historical survey on American Art in the 1960’s. From then on, art has been an important and fulfilling part of my life.
My collecting didn’t start in earnest until about the last 15-20 years after educating my two beautiful daughters and unraveling prior debts. The first oil painting my wife and I purchased was a cute little “Boat at the Marblehead Docks” scene and cost about $150. We went back to the same antique store 3 times before buying it, because we thought it a Queen’s ransom at the time. After that, I became seriously addicted to the collecting bug.
Who’s your favorite artist?
Picking a favorite artist is also an impossible task, because there is so much great art out there in many different venues. If stranded on a desert island with one palm tree & a single nail to hang a picture I think I’d have to go with Rembrandt. Still, I wouldn’t want to insult Michelangelo, Van Gogh, Eakins, Pollack, Banksy or so many others.
Of New England artists I am partial to Winslow Homer, John Singer Sargent and Frank Benson, but this list to can go on and on. In the Wellesley Collection, my favorites include Frederick Mulhaupt (the Dean of Cape Ann art), Charles Woodbury 9noted Boston & Oguinquit artist), plus Anthony Thieme & Emile Gruppe, two of the cornerstones of the Rockport art colony.
Do you create your own art?
I think of myself as more of an art historian than an artist. With that said, in my prior career as a plastic surgeon, when done right, we liked to think of the practice as a synthesis of art and science. I had done pencil sketches and caricatures as a teenager and in fact had one cartoon published in a syndicated newspaper. I occasionally do minor restoration repairs to paintings & frames I purchase in need of a little TLC.
Is Wellesley a hotbed for art?
Wellesley, as a town, is a highly supportive community for the fine arts in many ways. The Davis Museum at Wellesley College is a jewel of a small museum with collections from modern art, e.g. de Kooning, Warhol and Pollack to classic photography by Ansel Adams and Matthew Brady, American art like Copley to Bellows and European classics like Cezanne. For art lovers who don’t want to trek into Boston, I also recommend the Rose Art Museum in neighboring Waltham at Brandeis. They have one of the best collections of mid-century modern art in all of New England. The Wellesley school systems integrate the importance of the arts at an early age. The Wellesley Free Library sponsors new art exhibits on a monthly basis. They also offer an authors’ speaking series, which occasionally includes nationally recognized art writers like Gail Levin, author of Hopper & Krasner bios. The Wellesley Society of Artists has been active since 1933. J. Todd Galleries carries a nice selection of art including artists I have collected in the past, such as John Terelak and Robert Douglas Hunter. John Hagan of the Hagan Collection is a wonderful guy and knowledgeable art expert from whom I have purchased as well. With all of that said, Wellesley is not per se an art magnet in the sense of art colony communities such as Provincetown or Rockport.
Is collecting art a rich person’s game?
Certainly billionaires seeking “trophy” paintings and paying hundreds of millions of dollars for Picassos, etc., make for sexy headlines, but with modern technology and the quality reproductions available most people can surround themselves with art to enhance their lives. There are also innumerable contemporary artists, with terrific talent, trying to scratch out a living whose works are readily available for hundreds rather than thousands or millions. Works on paper, e.g., etchings or signed lithographs — some from very big name artists — can also be surprisingly affordable.
Have you ever found a great piece of art at the Wellesley dump?
Although I love the Wellesley dump and found many cherished books there, I have never seen any significant art work in the recycling area (but I am not a regular there and suspect they disappear quickly if they do arrive). With that said, I am an “equal opportunity” collector and have purchased art from estate sales, eBay, craigslist, etc. These venues can offer bargains but are also risky for the novice because fakes are common. Reputable auction houses, galleries and one of my favorites — direct from the artist — give you a layer of protection but not always the best pricing.
Have you collected any art from Wellesley-ites?
I have owned a large oil by Janet Hugenberger, past President of the Wellesley Society of Artists, and Charles Woodbury, who right after graduating from MIT with an engineering degree announced to his family that he was pursuing an art career. Woodbury was a close friend of Sargent and became one of the most important Boston artists of the early 20th century and started his famous Ogunquit School of Art. Prior to those lofty heights he had a teaching position at Wellesley College and married one of his students.
Hello Dr. Savage,
I read your biography of Bruce Mitchell on the AskArt site and am interested to learn more about him. I see he died in Langhorne, PA. Do you know if he was associated with the Bucks County Impressionists?
I am writing a book about Pennsylvania post office art and Mitchell painted a mural for the Columbia, PA Post Office. I have a good color photo of the mural but not much in the way of biographical information.
Thank you in advance for any information you might be able to provide.
–Dave
Are you familiar with Ives Gammel and some of his students like Curtis, Cormier, Dunlay, Hoffmann etc. Do you have view of which of this group is considered collectable?
Dear Dr. Sargent,
What a nice story about your background and collecting experiences.
You must visit a great museum only 20 minutes away. The McMullen Museum of Art at Boston College is a hidden jewel. We wish to change that. We have two scholarly exhibitions a year, one each semester. The curators include faculty and scholars from other institutions across the globe.
Last September the museum moved from the main campus in Chestnut Hill to a beautiful and larger space on the Brighton campus across Commonwealth Avenue.
It is open everyday. We would love to take you around. Our current exhibitions are Nature’s Mirror: Belgian Realist and Symbolist Art and Esteban Lisa a Spanish -Venezuelan abstract artist. Please check our website for details
I have been to the McMullen and it is indeed a treasure!
Certainly all art lovers in the greater Boston area should put it on their list.
Robert Savage MD (Bob)