Herb & Dorothy, Art Collecting and Me

When you think of art collectors, you have images of the rich and famous; of people spending hundreds of thousands of dollars for paintings by well known artists. You think of the Rockefellers, Gettys and Mellons. Do you know about Dorthy and Herbert Vogel? They are my new heroes; art collectors of modest means.

In 2007, Sotheby's UK included the Vogels in their book, Great Collectors of Our Time: Art Collecting Since 1945; and placed them among the top art collectors in the world. The Vogels had amassed a collection of nearly 4,800 pieces of conceptual and minimalist art.

It's not the number of pieces in their collection that makes them so unusual; and to me it's not even the artists that they collected. Herb was a postal clerk and Dorothy, a librarian in the Brooklyn Public Library. In the early 1960's, this couple began collecting artwork guided by two rules: the piece had to be affordable and it had to be small enough to fit in their one-bedroom Manhattan apartment. Herb's salary was devoted to collecting and they lived off of Dorothy's paycheck.

In 1992, the pair decided to transfer the collection to the National Gallery of Art and later, in 2008, launched the Dorthy and Herbert Vogel Collection: Fifty Works for Fifty States (along with the National Gallery of Art, the National Endowment for the Arts and the Institute of Museum and Library Services). The program has donated 2,500 works to 50 institutions across 50 states. The Columbia Museum of Art, in South Carolina, is one of those lucky venues.

Art is one of my passions. I have always hesitated to refer to myself as a collector; having the image of the Rockefeller, et al, accompanying the definition of collector. Now, having been exposed to the Vogel collection and the story of Herb and Dorothy, I "admit" to being a collector.

Unlike the Vogels, I do not have any "rules" to my purchases (other than how much can I afford to spend). My selections are mood initiated. The piece ends up "speaking to me" and I take it home. There is a story behind every purchase. The local artists in the Columbia area are phenomenal. They continue to amaze and inspire me; and comfort me in the confines of my home.



One of my favorite artists, and now dear friend, is Bonnie Goldberg. Bonnie's work speaks to my femininity, strength and spirituality. These paintings to the left are "New Attitude", "Reflections of You", and "Ladies Night Out".

As I survey my "collection", I realize that most of the paintings and prints are that of women; women alone, women with children, women with pets, women with women and two pieces of a woman with a prince. Now that speaks volumes to me.


Local artist, Blue Sky, is probably best know for his depictions of the Columbia area, Lake Murray and South Carolina in general. Shortly after my brother died in 1998, I was in Blue's gallery looking for a gift for a friend that was moving out of town. I saw this print for the first time then. This woman, was fallen upon the rocks of the river's edge, in despair. A lump formed in my throat. This piece, to this day, chronicles my grief of the loss of Bob. It's not with sadness that I look upon it; I know my brother would have appreciated the emotion of the image.


Friends question just what emotions I was experiencing when I chose "Good Ole Gal" by Cecil Parsons. I think I just saw a happy, well-groomed old lady with her cat. I aspire to be a happy, well-groomed old lady with a cat.

I have been lucky enough to add to my collection works by Richard McDonald, Joann McDermott, Carol McGill, Howard Hunt, Vincent Suttles and, of course my grandparents, Christine Lange and Ferdinand Veit.


I am no Dorthy and Herb Vogel. . .I'm just a "wanna be". . .I have lots of work to do.