Affectionate remembrances: Abby Aldrich Rockefeller, Lucy Truman Aldrich, and a case for cooperative collecting

Abstract

The thesis explores the human connection created by the consumption and exchange of objects. Examining the ceramics and glass at Bassett Hall, Mr. and Mrs. John D. Rockefeller Jr.'s Williamsburg, Virginia residence, the paper considers public versus private collecting motivations and performances. Reintroducing the well-established multi-dimensional persona of Mrs. Rockefeller in the private sphere, the paper explores her relationship to her sister Lucy Truman Aldrich. Using artifactual and written evidence, primarily between 1919–1947, the paper argues for Lucy Aldrich's role as an agent of taste. The thesis explores their interests and value systems as reflected at Bassett Hall. Acknowledging that most of the objects held private and emotional meanings and were signals of a sisterly bond, the paper explores Mrs. Rockefeller's exhibited value system in the context of the contemporary social norms. Surveying methods of acquisition, transfer, management, and display, the paper validates the disparate group of objects as a coherent collection.