Denman Waldo Ross

Denman Waldo Ross was a forerunner in leading Bostonian tastes from Barbizon to Impressionist. A Harvard graduate, Dr. Ross also became a professor of drawing and writing, as well as a painter. He traveled widely and acquired an extensive collection of high-quality objects, from Persian ceramics, Egyptian mummy cloths, to European paintings. In 1906, he gave the MFA its first three Monets, including the Cliffs of the Petites Dalles and Ravine of the Creuse. He also gave the museum its first Tiepolo sketch and a portrait of William Lock by Thomas Lawrence in memory of former director, Charles Greely Loring. An exceptional collector of artwork throughout the world, Mr. Ross bequeathed gifts to every curatorial department at the MFA. Dr. Ross also taught "Decorative Design and Household Arts" at the SMFA 1893–94.

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From “February to June 1894 there were 16 lectures provided by Mr. Walker, Mrs. Whitman, and Messrs. D. Ross, F. Bacon, J. L. Smith, F. Crowninshield, and Mrs. Stone.” From the Eighteenth Annual Report of the School of Drawing and Painting; 1894, page 8.