Ramsey County History – Fall 2018: “St. Paul’s Mary Griggs Burke, Abby Weed Grey, and Aimee Mott Butler: Three Extraordinary Women Who Supported Art and Artists”

St. Paul’s Mary Griggs Burke, Abby Weed Grey, and Aimee Mott Butler: Three Extraordinary Women Who Supported Art and Artists
Author: Moira F. Harris

Although most histories of the visual arts in the Twin Cities celebrate the contributions of men who were collectors, much less well-known are the roles played in the visual arts by three women in twentieth-century St. Paul: Mary Griggs Burke (1916–2012); Abby Weed Grey (1902–1983); and Aimee Mott Butler (1902–1993). For Griggs Burke, collecting Japanese art from all centuries was her passion. Weed Grey primarily collected contemporary art from the Middle East. Similarly, Mott Butler chose to acquire contemporary art from Minnesota. These women collectors all relied heavily on their own tastes and judgment in deciding what to buy using personal or foundation money. Lastly, all three chose to donate their collections for the benefit of the public to institutions that will maintain the art and support scholarly study of it. Their examples illustrate the prominent roles that a number of women now play in the visual arts in the Twin Cities as artists, collectors, educators, curators, dealers, and critics.
PDF of Harris article