David Anfam, scholar, gentleman, wordsmith, epicurean, died final Wednesday (21 August) in London. So long-standing and wide-reaching have his achievements within the discipline of artwork historical past been that it’s exhausting to grasp that he was nonetheless solely 69 on the time of his passing.
Actually I personally can’t recall a time after I wasn’t conscious of his work. His guide on Summary Expressionism for the Thames and Hudson World of Artwork collection grew to become a staple from its first publication in 1990. Then, over the next years, his continued explorations of Twentieth-century American artwork, from his catalogue raisonnée of Mark Rothko (1998)—nearly a decade within the writing—to his vital work on the Clyfford Nonetheless Museum, each previous to and after its opening in 2011, cemented his repute as an important determine within the discipline.
An alumnus of the Courtauld Institute (his PhD dissertation beneath John Golding was on the work of Nonetheless), he was very a lot an old-school scholar, rigorous and regarded, with a love and respect for the written phrase that was all the time evident in his personal intensive and diverse manufacturing, in addition to throughout has stint as a commissioning editor at Phaidon. He labored over the course of his life with any variety of main establishments and galleries, curating exhibits such because the vastly formidable survey of Summary Expressionism held on the Royal Academy in London in 2016. He was from the earliest days a continuing and dependable supporter and pal of the Rothko Museum in Daugavpils, Latvia. He additionally taught and spoke usually.
David labored intently with artists, writing and curating for contemporaries resembling Lynda Benglis and Invoice Viola, and most just lately Piero Dorazio. He was vastly supportive of a youthful technology of painters, myself included. Continually and punctiliously wanting, he would attain out on-line when an artist’s work caught his consideration. Equally he by no means hesitated to indicate up in assist of these artists he championed when it mattered, and he travelled extensively to that finish to the final.
I used to be privileged to lastly meet David simply earlier than the pandemic—one final studio go to earlier than lockdown for each of us—and we stayed in contact over the unusual 12 months or in order that adopted, bonding over portray, in fact, but in addition a shared love of T. S. Eliot, after which, much less fortunately, our concurrent most cancers diagnoses throughout these remoted months.
Within the studio, David introduced a sartorially inconceivable however instantly affable determine, and his care in response to my work was each beneficiant and regarded. The textual content he subsequently wrote for my exhibition at Vigo Gallery final 12 months, was, when it got here, traditional David—an erudite and exact pulling collectively of myriad cultural threads, the footnotes nearly so long as the textual content, and every delightfully private in tone.
David had change into an avid texter lately—he appeared to benefit from the immediacy of this written dialogue, notably as he grew to become extra exhausting of listening to. In between our occasional dinners I might obtain transient updates on his journeys—to his beloved Italy, to New York, Mexico and naturally Daugavpils. He appeared at instances perplexed by each the present artwork market and gallery scene, however took as a lot delight as ever in folks, in good meals, in very particular white wines, and in an obsessive re-organising of his guide assortment.
He had a peculiar love of treasured stone, and portray on treasured stone, and an nearly child-like pleasure in all issues James Bond. But regardless of his many pursuits, and his very many pals, David clearly profoundly, and each day, missed his life-partner Fred, whose reminiscence and assist he typically evoked.
I dined with David one final time initially of summer season—he was simply again from Venice, in good humour, filled with tasks, and sometimes avidly interested by his fellow visitors and all points of their lives. His vibrant thoughts was always looking for connections by means of and throughout disciplines.
It’s this curiosity and attentiveness, gentleness and generosity of spirit, that, past the extraordinary physique of scholarship and writing that David leaves, I’ll keep in mind.
David Anfam; born London, United Kingdom, 12 Could 1955; died London 21 August 2024Erin Lawlor is an artist primarily based in London, represented by Vigo Gallery
