Duncan Robinson papers on Paul Mellon

Duncan Robinson (June 27, 1943 – December 2, 2022) served as director of the Yale Center for British Art (YCBA) from 1981 to 1995. He was born in Kidsgrove, Stoke-on-Trent, England, and attended Clare College, Cambridge. From 1965 to 1967, Robinson attended Yale University on a Mellon fellowship, earning a master’s in art history. His museum career began in 1970 when he was appointed assistant keeper of paintings and drawings at the Fitzwilliam Museum, part of Cambridge University. He was promoted to keeper in 1976, and remained at the Fitzwilliam until joining the Yale Center for British Art in 1981. Robinson’s tenure as director of the Yale Center for British Art saw the expansion of the collections and the museum’s increased importance as a research hub for British art history. He oversaw major acquisitions such as James McNeill Whistler's Nocturne in Blue and Silver and J. M. W. Turner's Channel Sketchbook, and exhibitions such as the Tate collaboration George Stubbs, 1724–1806 and Richard Parkes Bonington: “On the Pleasure of Painting.” He had a close relationship with Paul Mellon, which helped to expand Mellon’s collecting interests to include twentieth-century British works. Robinson also served as an adjunct professor of art history at Yale during this time. Robinson departed the YCBA in 1995 to become director of the Fitzwilliam Museum, where he remained until retiring in 2007. During his time at the Fitzwilliam, he was named Master of Magdalene College (2002–12), as well as a deputy vice chancellor of Cambridge starting in 2005. Beyond these extensive responsibilities, Robinson actively served on various boards, councils, and cultural heritage organizations, including his time as chairman of the Henry Moore Foundation, trustee of the Royal Collection, and more. He was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in 2008 in recognition of his extensive contributions to the heritage of art. For more information, please see the obituary for Robinson published by the Yale Center for British Art: https://britishart.yale.edu/news-and-press/memoriam-duncan-robinson-cbe-1943-2022