Professors Theodore Reff and Miyeko Murase Honored at Ceremonies in New York

Two Professors Emeriti of the Department of Art History and Archaeology have received prestigious international awards. On November 29, at the French Consulate in New York, Professor Theodore Reff was presented with the Insignia of Commandeur of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, the highest rank in this order of merit established by the government of France. On November 30, at the home of the Consul General of Japan, in the name of the Emperor, the Order of the Sacred Treasure, Gold Rays with Neck Ribbon, an order of merit established in 1888, was conferred upon Professor Miyeko Murase. These splendid awards recognize their contributions to French and Japanese art and culture as teachers, scholars, and curators. The Department warmly congratulates Professors Reff and Murase on the receipt of these honors.

December 20, 2010
Professor Theodore Reff. Photograph courtesy of Juliette Charvet.

Professor Theodore Reff (CC '52) has lectured and written extensively on European painting and sculpture from about 1840 to 1940, above all on the artists Manet, Degas, Cézanne, Matisse, Picasso, and Duchamp. Professor Reff came to the Department of Art History and Archeology as an instructor in 1957 and was appointed full professor in 1967. He also held prestigious visiting professorships, including the Slade Professorship at the University of Cambridge. He retired from the Department in 2000. In addition to his scholarship and teaching, Professor Reff has organized major exhibitions, including "Degas: The Artist's Mind" (The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1976) and "Manet and Modern Paris" (National Gallery of Art, 1982), has co-organized "Cézanne: The Late Work" (Museum of Modern Art, 1976), and has contributed to numerous exhibition catalogs.

Professor Miykeo Murase and Ambassador Shinichi Nishimiya. Photograph courtesy of the Consulate General of Japan.

Professor Miyeko Murase ('62 PhD) began her career as an assistant professor in Columbia University's Department of Art History and Archaeology in 1962, becoming a full professor in 1975 and retiring in 1996. In addition to her field of specialization—Japanese paintings, scrolls and screens—she has also researched Japanese sculpture, decorative arts and architecture. She has also curated many major exhibitions, including "Byobu: Japanese Screens from New York Collections" (Asia Society, 1971), "Japanese Arts: Selections from the Mary and Jackson Bruke Collection" (The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1975), and more recently, as Special Consultant at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, "Bridge of Dreams: the Mary Burke Collection of Japanese Art" (2000) and "Oribe—Japanese Art in the Transitional Period" (2003–2004).