Timothy Potts is an Australian

art historian Art history is the study of artistic works made throughout human history. Among other topics, it studies art’s formal qualities, its impact on societies and cultures, and how artistic styles have changed throughout history. Traditionally, the ...

archaeologist Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, ...

, and

museum director Director may refer to: Literature * ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine * ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker * ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty Music * Director (band), an Irish rock band * ''D ...

. He became the director of the

J. Paul Getty Museum The J. Paul Getty Museum, commonly referred to as the Getty, is an art museum in Los Angeles, California, United States, housed on two campuses: the Getty Center and Getty Villa. It is operated by the J. Paul Getty Trust, the world's wealthies ...

on 1 September 2012.

Biography

Timothy Potts was educated at the

University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD) is a public university, public research university in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in both Australia and Oceania. One of Australia's six sandstone universities, it was one of the ...

(BA Hons) and holds a DPhil in

Near East The Near East () is a transcontinental region around the Eastern Mediterranean encompassing the historical Fertile Crescent, the Levant, Anatolia, Egypt, Mesopotamia, and coastal areas of the Arabian Peninsula. The term was invented in the 20th ...

ern art and archaeology from the

University of Oxford The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the List of oldest un ...

, where he was a research lecturer and British Academy Research Fellow in Near Eastern Archaeology and Art at

Christ Church, Oxford Christ Church (, the temple or house, ''wikt:aedes, ædes'', of Christ, and thus sometimes known as "The House") is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1546 by Henry V ...

(1985–90). His research interests are Ancient Near Eastern art history, archaeology and history; museology; the classical tradition in western art. Potts acted as co-director of the University of Sydney excavations at

Pella Pella () is an ancient city located in Central Macedonia, Greece. It served as the capital of the Ancient Greece, ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia (ancient kingdom), Macedon. Currently, it is located 1 km outside the modern town of Pella ...

Jordan Jordan, officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, is a country in the Southern Levant region of West Asia. Jordan is bordered by Syria to the north, Iraq to the east, Saudi Arabia to the south, and Israel and the occupied Palestinian ter ...

from 1982 to 1989. He worked at

Lehman Brothers Lehman Brothers Inc. ( ) was an American global financial services firm founded in 1850. Before filing for bankruptcy in 2008, Lehman was the fourth-largest investment bank in the United States (behind Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, and Merril ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

from 1990 to 1994, after which he became director of the

National Gallery of Victoria The National Gallery of Victoria, popularly known as the NGV, is an art museum in Melbourne, Victoria (state), Victoria, Australia. Founded in 1861, it is Australia's oldest and list of most visited art museums in the world, most visited art mu ...

(1994–1998). In conjunction with his directorship at the National Gallery of Victoria, Timothy was an adjunct professor at

La Trobe University La Trobe University is a public university, public research university based in Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. Its main campus is located in the suburb of Bundoora, Victoria, Bundoora. The university was established in 1 ...

, and a professorial fellow at the

University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne (colloquially known as Melbourne University) is a public university, public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in the state ...

. He was the director of the

Kimbell Art Museum The Kimbell Art Museum in Fort Worth, Texas, hosts an art collection as well as traveling art exhibitions, educational programs and an extensive research library. Its initial artwork came from the private collection of Kay and Velma Kimbell, w ...

in Fort Worth, Texas from 1998 to 2007 and the director of the

Fitzwilliam Museum The Fitzwilliam Museum is the art and antiquities University museum, museum of the University of Cambridge. It is located on Trumpington Street opposite Fitzwilliam Street in central Cambridge. It was founded in 1816 under the will of Richard ...

in Cambridge, England from 2007 to 2012.

Writing

Potts is a specialist in the art and archaeology of the ancient Near East and Mediterranean on which he has written widely. His works in the field include: :*Civilization British Museum Ancient Trea :*Kimbell Art Museum: Handbook of the Collection :*From Renoir to Picasso : Masterpices from the Musee de L'Orangerie :*Mesopotamia & the East: An Archaeological & Historical Study of Foreign Relations 3400-2000 Bc. (Oxford University Committee for Archaeology Monograph Ser No. 37.) :*Post-modernisms: Origins, Consequences, Reconsiderations

Past Directorships

In 2007,

Duncan Robinson Duncan McBryde Robinson (born April 22, 1994) is an American professional basketball player for the Miami Heat of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the NCAA Division III Williams College Ephs and then ...

(now CBE) retired, Potts took over as the

's 12th Director. During his time at the Fitzwilliam (2007–12), Potts served as Chairman of the Art Committee, with Mr Donald Hearn as

Bursar A bursar (derived from ''wikt:bursa, bursa'', Latin for 'Coin purse, purse') is a professional Administrator of the government, administrator in a school or university often with a predominantly financial role. In the United States, bursars usual ...

, at

Clare College, Cambridge Clare College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. The college was founded in 1326 as University Hall, making it the second-oldest surviving college of the Unive ...

Potts also directed studies in the History of Art for

Clare College Clare College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. The college was founded in 1326 as University Hall, making it the second-oldest surviving college of the University after Peterhouse. It was refounded ...

. Between his academic and museum positions, Potts had a corporate career with

where he was Senior Vice President of the Media and Communications Group, Investment Banking Department, (

and

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

) from 1990 to 1994. During Potts' tenure as director of the

he added many pieces of art to the Kimbell's permanent collection: in sculpture, St John the Baptist by

Michelozzo Michelozzo di Bartolomeo Michelozzi (; – 7 October 1472), known mononymously as Michelozzo, was an Italian architect and sculptor. Considered one of the great pioneers of architecture during the Renaissance, Michelozzo was a favored Medici ...

, Virgin and Child by

Donatello Donato di Niccolò di Betto Bardi ( – 13 December 1466), known mononymously as Donatello (; ), was an Italian Renaissance sculpture, Italian sculptor of the Renaissance period. Born in Republic of Florence, Florence, he studied classical sc ...

, Relief Head of Christ attributed to Tullio Lombardo, Isabella d’Este by Gian Cristoforo Romano, Late Gothic Silver-Gilt Virgin and Child (anonymous), and Modello for the Fountain of the Moor by

Bernini Gian Lorenzo (or Gianlorenzo) Bernini (, ; ; Italian Giovanni Lorenzo; 7 December 1598 – 28 November 1680) was an Italian sculptor and architect. While a major figure in the world of architecture, he was more prominently the leading sculptor ...

; in paintings, The Judgment of Paris by

Lucas Cranach the Elder Lucas Cranach the Elder ( ; – 16 October 1553) was a German Renaissance painter and printmaker in woodcut and engraving. He was court painter to the Electors of Saxony for most of his career, and is known for his portraits, both of German ...

, and A Dentist by Candlelight by

Gerrit Dou Gerrit Dou (; 7 April 1613 – 9 February 1675), also known as Gerard Douw or Dow, was a Dutch Golden Age painter, whose small, highly polished paintings are typical of the Leiden fijnschilders. He specialised in genre scenes and is noted for h ...

; in antiquities, Head of an Athlete (Apoxyomenos) after

Lysippos Lysippos (; ) was a Greek sculptor of the 4th century BC. Together with Scopas and Praxiteles, he is considered one of the three greatest sculptors of the Classical Greek era, bringing transition into the Hellenistic period. Problems confron ...

, and The Death of Pentheus by Douris; in Precolumbian art, 5th-century

Maya Maya may refer to: Ethnic groups * Maya peoples, of southern Mexico and northern Central America ** Maya civilization, the historical civilization of the Maya peoples ** Mayan languages, the languages of the Maya peoples * Maya (East Africa), a p ...

Jade Belt Ornament, and Codex-Style Cup showing Scribal Training by the "Princeton Painter"; and in Asian art, Bamboo and Rocks by Tan Zhirui. Exhibitions at The

under Potts’s directorship included: :*Picturing the Bible: The Earliest Christian Art (18 November 2007 – 20 March 2008) :*Drama and Desire Japanese Paintings from the Floating World, 1690–1850 (11 February – 29 April 2007) :*The Mirror and the Mask: Portraiture in the Age of Picasso (17 June – 16 September 2007) :*Masterpiece: A New Look at the Kimbell Collection (30 April – 23 July 2006) :*Hatshepsut: From Queen to Pharaoh (27 August – 31 December 2006) :*Gauguin and Impressionism (18 December 2005 – 26 March 2006) :*Palace & Mosque: Islamic Art from the Victoria and Albert Museum (3 April – 4 September 2005) :*Turner and Venice (15 February – 30 May 2004) :*Genius of the French Rococo: The Drawings of François Boucher (1703–1770) and Boucher's Mythological Paintings:The Last Great Series Reunited (18 January – 18 April 2004) :*Caravaggio to Dalí: 100 Masterpieces from the Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art (27 June – 26 September 2004) :*Stubbs & The Horse (14 November – 6 February 2005) :*Modigliani & The Artists of Montparnasse (9 February – 25 May 2003) :*The Quest for Immortality: Treasures of Ancient Egypt (4 May – 14 September 2003) :*Painted Prayers: Medieval and Renaissance Books of Hours from the Morgan Library (12 October 2003 – 18 January 2004) :*Bartolomé Esteban Murillo 1617–1682 (10 March – 16 June 2002) :*Mondrian: The Path to Abstraction 1892–1914 (18 August – 8 December 2002) :*The Design and Construction of the Kimbell Art Museum: A 30th-Anniversary Exhibition (21 September – 3 November 2002) :*The Floral Art of Pierre-Joseph Redouté (17 November 2002 – 2 March 2003) :*European Masterpieces: Six Centuries of Paintings from the National Gallery of Victoria, Australia (18 March – 27 May 2001) :*Treasures From A Lost Civilization: Ancient Chinese Art from Sichuan (30 September 2001 – 13 January 2002) :*Worlds of Transformation: Tibetan Art of Wisdom and Compassion (16 January – 26 March) :*Giovanni Battista Moroni: Renaissance Portraitist (26 February – 28 May 2001) :*Straganoff: The Palace and Collections of a Russian Noble Family (2 July – 1 October 2000) :*From Renoir to Picasso: Masterpieces from the Musée de l'Orangerie (12 November 2000 – 25 February 2001) :*Gifts of the Nile: Ancient Egyptian Faience (24 January – 25 April 1999) :*Matisse & Picasso: A Gentle Rivalry (31 January – 2 May 1999)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Potts, Timothy 1958 births Living people University of Sydney alumni Alumni of the University of Oxford Academic staff of the University of Melbourne Academic staff of La Trobe University Fellows of Christ Church, Oxford Fellows of Clare College, Cambridge American businesspeople Directors of museums in Australia Directors of museums in the United States Directors of the Fitzwilliam Museum Australian art historians Australian archaeologists