Portrait of Putnam D. McMillan

President of the Society of Fine Arts from 1948-1954, Putnam Dana McMillan credited his sister Emily, who had studied in Paris, with developing his interest in art. On retirement he traveled to New York with the intention of forming a collection of late 19th and early 20th century paintings under the guidance of Richard S. Davis, then chief curator. When he died in 1961 he bequeathed nearly twenty-four masterpieces which form the core of the museum's 20th century collection.