Aso Tavitian’s Gifts of Art and Humanity

A LOOK INTO THE LIFE AND LEGACY OF AN EXCEPTIONAL BUSINESS LEADER AND PHILANTHROPIST

By Anastasia Stanmeyer

It’s easy to see how Aso Tavitian was a favorite of curators, conservators, and dealers. He was eager to learn and passionate about the art he collected. He was not only friendly with art experts, he welcomed them into his country house in Stockbridge and townhouse in Manhattan. He not only valued their opinions, he met up with them at art fairs and often called on them for advice. He not only was generous, he used his wealth to help others and, in a final act of benevolence, he set in motion a gift to the Clark Art Institute that will forever change the institution. 

The Clark’s Olivier Meslay, Esther Bell, and Kathleen Morris developed friendships with Tavitian and worked closely with him through the years. As he was making estate planning considerations, Tavitian sought to preserve a core group of his collection and ultimately looked to the Clark to construct a wing where it would be exhibited. He was drawn to the museum because it offered an intimacy that he shared with the artwork he collected. 

“Aso, like many people, had a feeling that at the Clark, your relationship to objects here is probably more similar to the one you have in a private house than the one you have in a very large institution,” says Meslay, the Clark’s Hardymon Director. “The museum is quite intimate, which was fitting for his own taste. It is also open to the world, the collection is of highest quality, and it is in a beautiful, natural setting. The Berkshires was a place that Tavitian loved.” 

The planning of the gift was accelerated after Tavitian received a cancer diagnosis in the fall of 2019. Everyone thought he had years to live. He died six months later, on April 21, 2020. The details of the gift, including selecting the artwork, were yet to be determined. Meslay, Morris, and Bell subsequently took their time to carefully study Tavitian’s private collection. They approached the process with deep scholarship and understanding, returning to Tavitian’s residences to spend time with some 3,000 paintings, sculptures, furniture, and decorative arts pieces, taking in the features and the spaces these works shared. 

“There was a lot of pleasure to go back and see the pieces and to say, ‘Oh, I was not remembering how the marble is translucent with the light coming through.’ Or, ‘This bronze has a beautiful patina.’” says Meslay. “We were certainly very attentive, because we knew we were making a decision which would have an impact on the Clark for the long term.” 

It was, in fact, a curator’s dream. Tavitian’s private collection was among the finest in the world of early modern and early 19th century art. The trio ultimately selected 331 objects—132 paintings, 130 sculptures, 39 drawings, and 30 decorative arts objects—that will reside in the future Aso O. Tavitian Wing of the Clark. The Tavitian Foundation allocated more than $45 million for construction of the wing and to endow a curatorial position and an additional staff member to oversee the collection, and provide necessary support and long-term care for the collections. Selldorf Architects is in the early stages of planning and designing a 10,000- to 12,000-square-foot facility that will connect the existing Manton Research Center and the original 1955 Museum Building. They anticipate its opening to be in 2028. 

“This is an incredible legacy; the ultimate act of generosity,” says Bell, the Clark’s Deputy Director and Chief Curator.

WHO WAS ASSADOUR OHANES TAVITIAN?

Who was this person of such wealth whose legacy will be shared with everyone? 

“He was a very low-key person,” says Candace Beinecke, Tavitian’s good friend and lawyer, as well as president of The Tavitian Foundation and co-chair of The Met’s Board of Trustees. “He was not a self-promoter. It was never about him. He was the smartest in the room, but you didn't hear that from him. He was a gifted, lovely, thoughtful man who was all about giving back.” 

Assadour Ohanes Tavitian, known to all as “Aso,” was born in Sofia, Bulgaria, to parents who were survivors of the 1915 Armenian genocide. His well-to-do family had lost not only all their material possessions, but also the lives of their loved ones. They rebuilt their fortunes in Bulgaria, to only lose their possessions once again to the Communists when they took over Bulgaria at the end of the Second World War. 

He arrived with his family in Beirut, Lebanon, in 1959. After learning English from an Armenian English high school teacher in Beirut, Tavitian was accepted at Haigazian College on a full scholarship but couldn’t afford his living expenses. He was facing the real possibility of not being able to pursue his education, until an anonymous benefactor altered his life. Tavitian later learned that his English teacher of minimal means made his education possible. 

The generosity impacted Tavitian for a lifetime. He later established what is called The Tavitian Scholars Program at Tufts University, which provides a semester of education for mid-career government officials in the Republic of Armenia. He also supported the Armenian Church in many ways. The government of Armenia recognized his contributions and awarded him the Order of Honor and the Prime Minister’s Medal. 

Tavitian came to America from Beirut to attend Columbia University on a full scholarship, receiving a bachelor of science degree and later a master’s in nuclear engineering. He thought he wanted to be a scientist, but that changed when he became involved in one of the first independent software companies. He was among five college graduates—from NYU, Stevens Tech, and Columbia—who joined Duane Whitlow and Stan Rintel in their startup company. 

Tavitian was scraping by at the time, working as a taxi driver, playing bridge for money, and driving around in a beat-up Mercury Cougar. So he joined the company in Teaneck, New Jersey, and became so committed that he dropped the doctoral thesis he was working on. While some of his business partners were working on an airline reservation system, Tavitian was beginning to develop a mainframe sorting system. 

Eventually, he realized they were onto something big and needed to begin marketing the company. They invited what was then Chemical Bank and set up a benchmark test with IBM, which led to a cover story in Computerworld. The article highlighted the product’s ability to cut IBM's sort times in half with a drop-in replaceable sort. The headline couldn’t fit “Synchronized,” so it read “Synch Sort.” 

“From that one article, we got over 400 letters wanting to know more about Synch Sort,” says Harvey Tessler, a partner in the company and a close friend of Tavitian’s. “We dropped the ‘h’ and took the two capital letters, and that was the name of the product, SyncSort.” 

Tavitian wanted SyncSort to engage in multi-year leases paid in advance of the software. When leases renewed, the price would increase by a small percentage. It was brilliant. SyncSort became the dominant sort program for IBM mainframe computers in the late-1970s and continued up until the present day. 

From 1975 to 2008, Tavitian was CEO of SyncSort. Largely responsible for the company’s growth, he realized that the only way to continue making money was to keep improving the data sorting product and investing more than anyone else in the industry. 

“He also knew how to build a company that treated people right,” says Tessler. The company continued to thrive, and Tavitian eventually sold a large portion of his stake to a group of venture capital investors. He continued to serve on the company's board of directors through 2015, when he sold his minority stake. In May 2020, SyncSort rebranded itself as Precisely. 

Tavitian’s wife, Arlene, whom he met on a subway, worked as a teacher in New Jersey. Their love for the Berkshires started when they would go for weekends there. They bought a property on Prospect Hill Road in Stockbridge, next to Naumkeag, which had once belonged to dancer and actress Marge Champion Sagal. The existing home was razed, and five years later, they had a newly constructed five-bedroom home with nine fireplaces, a media room, wine cellar, fitness studio, wraparound tiered terraces, pool with pool house, and three-bedroom guesthouse. 

In 1997, Tavitian also bought a 1910 Manhattan townhouse designed by C.P.H. Gilbert for $11.5 million. The structure previously had been turned into offices and apartments, and Tavitian returned the townhouse to its former glory as a single-family home. Arlene died before the renovations were completed. 

A widower at age 62, Tavitian dated here and there. Then, while on a trip to the Hamptons, he met Isabella Meisinger, who worked in an antique shop. They hit it off and were together through the end of his life.

THE ART COLLECTION 

As he furnished his homes, Tavitian found himself spending more and more time researching and learning about art collecting—so much so that he became immersed in the art world. Meisinger was with Tavitian through his primary collecting years. 

“He was the absolute dream partner,” says Meisinger. “Aso was passionate about everything, not only about paintings. He had a fantastic collection of 18th century English furniture, a fantastic collection of ivory. He bought a lot of miniatures. His portraits were very unique, so he unknowingly developed a great portrait collection. It was such a wonderful journey.” 

Tavitian collected portraits from 1450 to 1850. Each fall, he and Meisinger hosted a dinner party at their East 79th Street home and invited art dealers who were in the city for the art show at the Park Avenue Armory. The couple visited fine art and antique galleries, auction houses, and museums. A favorite of Tavitian’s was The European Fine Art Fair (TEFAF), held in mid-March in Maastricht, Netherlands. 

He surrounded himself with people in the art world, such as David Bull, a conservator of Old Masters paintings who died this past December. Tavitian asked Bull for his help in finding artwork to decorate his homes. It was evident then—and even more so after he purchased his 12th painting—that most of his purchases were portraits. At a talk in 2019 at The Frick, Tavitian recalled that moment. “I sat down in the kitchen, and I said to myself, ‘Okay, why do you buy portraits?’ My answer at the time, and still is, is that I like people, and so, naturally, I tend to gravitate towards portraits.” 

Laura Fitzpatrick, Tavitian’s longtime employee, helped him with the purchase process and recalls a couple of trips to TEFAF. “He was just snatching up paintings like nobody’s business,” she says. “I remember trying to track down the vendors overseas, making sure our shipper was able to get them in time. Up until the end, he continued to collect.” 

Meisinger points to two paintings that were his favorites: Jacopo da Pontormo’s Portrait of a Boy (c.1535–40 or later), oil on fired tile, which is now in the Clark’s collection; and Giovanni Battista Moroni’s Portrait of a Young Woman, (ca. 1575), oil on canvas, now in the collection of The Frick. 

“Even though I refer to myself as a collector—because everybody says I'm a collector—often I feel that it's a misnomer for me,” Tavitian said during the discussion at The Frick. “What I'm after is creating a certain environment in which I live, and I couldn't care less if I'm missing a particular type of painting or a particular sequence or whatever.” 

George Wachter, Sotheby’s chairman and co-worldwide head of Old Masters Paintings, recalls meeting Tavitian in 2004. At that time, Tavitian expressed to him that he wanted to buy Old Masters paintings and was eager to learn more. He slowly but surely started buying, with Wachter often on the phone advising him. 

“The way he decided was very interesting,” says Wachter. “In a private sale, he would offer a price, and if they didn’t agree, he wouldn’t buy it. Auctions were different. He would bid until he bought it. The estimate might be $10,000, and he would buy it at $250,000. I would say, ‘Why did you bid that much?’ ‘George, when I make a decision to buy something, it's mine. I just need to know the price.’” 

Kathleen Morris, the Clark’s Director of Collections and Exhibitions and Curator of Decorative Arts, met Tavitian in 2005, when she first started working at the museum. Her friendship with him was highlighted by trips to TEFAF. He became such an important collector that dealers would reach out to him before the event to let him know about special items they would be bringing. Often on the first hour of the fair, Tavitian would have bought something great. He always hosted a private dinner at La Cantina in Liège, about 30 minutes from TEFAF, that first evening of the fair. It initially included Meisinger, the Clark team, conservators David Bull and Teresa Longyear, Candace and Rick Beinecke, and London gallerist Alan Rubin. Through the years, the gathering grew to some 30 people. 

“It was very exciting,” Morris says, “because the first day is always just this thrill of seeing what's there, and everyone's talking about who they think bought what. I got to know him through those fairs.” 

Meslay became acquainted with Tavitian in 2008 in Paris, while Meslay was working at the Louvre. A mutual friend, Old Masters consultant Etienne Bréton, introduced the two of them, and they hit it off right away. For one thing, Tavitian and Meslay had the Berkshires in common—Tavitian with his home in Stockbridge and serving as good a board member of the Clark; Meslay, a fellow at the museum with his wife in 2000. Tavitian visited Meslay when he worked at the Dallas Museum of Art, and when Meslay became director of the Clark in 2016, their relationship grew even stronger. 

Like others who visited Tavitian’s home in Stockbridge, Meslay felt it was a privilege to be there every time he went. There weren’t many people in the world who were able to combine a personal connection with the financial ability to collect such incredible pieces, Meslay says. He was especially drawn to two works. One was Portrait of a Young Man Holding a Lira da Braccio (c.1510–20), artist unknown. The other was attributed to Luigi Miradori, Girl with a Lute (c.1640). There was also one that Meslay saw at an art fair just before Tavitian bought it, Self-Portrait in a Turban (1650–75) by Wallerant Vaillant. All are now with the Clark. 

“When you were with Aso, you had the feeling that there was a dialogue between him and the work he had in front of him,” says Meslay. “It was not a trophy collection. They were masterpieces, but at the same time, it was something appealing on a very personal level.” 

In addition to the Clark, Tavitian was deeply connected to other museums located close to where he lived. That included The Metropolitan Museum of Art and The Frick, both on the Upper East Side of Manhattan. But there was a reason the Clark received the lion’s share of Tavitian’s collection. 

“It came down to space more than anything,” says Ian Wardropper, who retired this year after 14 years as director of The Frick. He admitted he was a bit disappointed, but also realistic. “We're a relatively small house that was built in 1914 and added to in 1935 when we opened to the public. We just recently finished a refurbishment and enhancement of the building but haven't really added a lot of gallery space. We simply wouldn't have had room the way that the Clark did, to build an entire building to house the collection.” Another reason why the collection went to the Clark, he says, is because it is a teaching institution, which was very important to Tavitian. 

On April 17, The Frick reopened after a multi-year renovation. One of the first paintings you come upon is a gift from The Tavitian Foundation: Giovanni Battista Moroni’s stunning Portrait of a Woman, the most significant Italian Renaissance painting the museum has acquired in more than half a century. Moroni was one of the great portrait painters of the mid-16th century, and The Frick had previously devoted a whole exhibition to him, with this painting a centerpiece of that installation. 

“From that moment, we saw how well it fit our holdings,” says Wardropper. “We did not have a Renaissance portrait of a woman on panel or canvas before. It was thematically an addition, but also it’s one of Moroni’s best works. The painting is a subtle, interesting portrait of a youngish woman who's not just simply sitting there, she's kind of appraising you at the same time. She’s not passive. She's quite engaged. That’s what I think makes it a particularly alluring and deep picture.” 

The Met received Francesco Salviati's Bindo Altoviti (1491–1557), the first painting on marble it has acquired. The piece, originally attributed to Girolamo da Carpi, caught Tavitian’s attention at an auction in London. When it was added to his collection, scholars took a closer look and recognized that it was, in fact, a significant work of Salviati, a leading painter of the 16th century. No doubt, Tavitian had a fantastic instinct, says Stephan Wolohojian, John Pope-Hennessy Curator in Charge of European Paintings at The Met. 

The painting was lent to The Met for a special exhibition in 2021, and Tavitian passed away as final preparations were being made. The piece, which is incredibly fragile and cumbersome, never left The Met after that and is now on permanent exhibition in the gallery dedicated to Italian Renaissance sculpture and decorative arts. This was an ultimate gesture from Tavitian, who generously supported The Met in many ways. For instance, he facilitated the loans from the Armenian Patriarchate of St. James in Jerusalem, as well as loans from the Mother See of Holy Etchmitdzin in Armenia and the Diocese of the Armenian Church of America, for the 2018–19 blockbuster exhibition Armenia!. It was The Met’s first major exhibition to explore the artistic and cultural achievements of the Armenian people in a global context over 14 centuries. 

“He was a real presence in the world of European paintings and sculpture, and he was a very hospitable, very warm person, very engaging,” says Wolohojian, who became friends with Tavitian and was invited along with others in his department at The Met to dinners at his townhouse.

THE AUCTIONS

Many more spectacular paintings and sculptures, as well as other exquisite items from Tavitian’s townhouse and country house, were auctioned at Sotheby’s in January and February, resulting in $21 million in sales. All proceeds have gone to The Tavitian Foundation to support world peace, particularly in the Armenian region; to the arts; and to education, which includes The Tavitian Scholars Program. The last of the items were auctioned at Stair Galleries in Hudson, New York, raising an additional $1.6 million for the foundation. 

A walk through the fourth floor of Sotheby's New York at the time of the Tavitian auction felt almost like you were stepping into his personal space. The sheer volume of items that he collected was realized when everything was carefully laid out on the floor. Yet, even in the galleries, there was a sense of warmth and intimacy with the pieces coming together once again and perhaps for the last time. 

A few of the items that fetched the highest prices included Master of the Magdalene Legend’s Portrait of Margaret of Austria for $1.4 million and Ambrosius Benson’s Saint Mary Magdalene Reading an Illuminated Manuscript for $900,000. Tavitian also had one of the best collections of English furniture, which was apparent in this display. 

“He was buying from important auctions and also from the leading dealers, primarily London dealers, several of whom don't exist anymore because they've retired,” says Dennis Harrington, head of European furniture at Sotheby’s. “In some ways, he was one of the last of the great old-fashioned gentleman collectors of English furniture.” 

Before Harrington joined Sotheby's, he worked at Pelham Galleries in London and remembers Tavitian buying something there every year. (More than 20 items in the auction were from the London gallery, Harrington says.) 

Tavitian turned to furnishing his homes before he became fully immersed in collecting fine art. He wanted the furniture to complement his taste in art, and he was drawn to English furniture. “A lot of people react to English future because it tends to be slightly less ornate and slightly less over the top,” says Harrington. “It’s great quality, and some of it is extraordinary and beautifully carved. One of the successes of English furniture is that it was always designed with comfort in mind.” 

Even after his homes were fully furnished, Tavitian still loved to go antique shopping, looking for small items that he could always find a place in his homes. Perhaps that is where he found a pair of British carved walnut and engraved steel percussion duelling pistols that were attributed to Daniel Ross, Edinburgh, c.1835 (and sold at the Sotheby’s auction for $18,000). Or a pair of Chinese wood and painted plaster nodding-head figures, c.1850 (that was sold at auction for $45,600).

TAVITIAN’S HOMES

In September 2024, Tavitian’s seven-floor Gilded Age townhouse in Manhattan's prestigious Upper East Side near Central Park sold for $56 million. Tavitian’s 6.2-acre estate at 7 Prospect Hill Road in Stockbridge, built in 1993, remains listed by Sotheby’s International Realty for $9.95 million. I visited the Stockbridge home with listing agent Pat Melluzzo. When I first entered the home, my eyes immediately were drawn to the most magnificent sculpture, which I soon learned was Hercules Chained by Love (1754) by Jean Joseph Vinache (now in the possession of the Clark). 

Some of the artwork was still hanging; other pieces were loosely sitting in cardboard staging boxes waiting to be packed for transport to the Clark. One piece on the wall was by Meindert Hobbema, titled A Wooded Landscape with Travelers on a Road by Cottage (1660s). It was also destined for the Clark. There was a section of the home that contained some 30 small sculptures by Jean-Pierre Dantan (1800–1869). I leafed through a booklet of information that I found near the pieces and learned that this French portrait sculptor is known as the inventor of the sculptural caricature. As I read, it felt like Tavitian was sharing with me his knowledge of the artwork that meant so much to him. 

Although his Stockbridge home was large in size, each room had a certain warmth to it, as if someone who loved being there had lived there. I was told that everything was controlled to protect the art—from air conditioning and humidity control, to expansive windows with shades that rolled down by remote control when the sun was strong. 

Melluzzo was admittedly happy that the artwork was going. Having a furnished home for sale might be more appealing to view than one that is empty, but the artwork became the attraction for perspective buyers. I could understand that; I was one of those people who was awestruck by the art. 

Walking around, I envisioned Tavitian out to the terrace, looking at the view—the expanse of Naumkeag’s protected property and Stockbridge Bowl in the distance. I imagined he would be immersed in the beauty and tranquility of his surroundings. The view from the sunroom was equally stunning. On a clear day, you can even see the Stockbridge Cemetery, where Tavitian is now buried. 

“It was great when he gave the tour,” his caretaker tells me, pulling me back to the present. He was with Tavitian here the night before he died and took him to the hospital. “I wish I had recorded him giving a tour of his house. I regret that I didn't do that because he had a great voice—Aso talking about why he chose this painting, what the connection was, why he liked it.” 

Exquisite paintings and sculptures were gifted by The Tavitian Foundation to The Met, The Frick, and the Clark. Clockwise from top left, Francesco Salviati, Bindo Altoviti (1491–1557), The Met; Claude-Joseph Vernet, Thine Falls, near Schaffhausen, Switzerland (1779), the Clark; Gian Lorenzo Bernini, Countess Matilda of Canossa (c.1630–39), the Clark; Jean-Pierre Dantan, Younger Niccolo Paganini, the Clark; Giovanni Battista Moroni, Portrait of a Woman (c.1575), The Frick; and Jean Antoine Houdon, Little Lise (1775), the Clark.

Tavitian and Meisinger were the ultimate hosts, often holding dinner parties at both residences. His New York house was very elegant, with exquisite craftsmanship found throughout the interior: the upholstered walls; the hand-selected and hand-carved marble walls, floors, and stairways; the elegant antique light figures; and so on. 

Many of Tavitian’s greatest paintings and sculptures that he owned may have been found there, but the Stockbridge house also was filled with great art. People from various organizations like Berkshire Theatre Group, Austen Riggs, the Clark, the Mahaiwe, and Close Encounters With Music would be invited to his Berkshire home. 

“He was, indeed, a generous supporter—truly, a gracious man,” says Kate Maguire, CEO and artistic director of Berkshire Theatre Group. “Each summer season, Aso would entertain a full cast and company of our artists from a particular production. The evenings he and Isabella hosted were as sophisticated as they were fun.” 

He carefully curated these dinner parties, down to the seating arrangements. Each gathering was special, oftentimes with a guest speaker or a group of musicians performing. Tavitian was a good friend of cellist Yehuda Hanani, founder and artistic director of Close Encounters With Music in Great Barrington, a classical music series with commentary. He was introduced to Hanani at a friend’s dinner party, where Hanani talked about the mission of Close Encounters With Music, which was then in the process of being formed. 

With a passion for opera and classical music, Tavitian became a strong supporter of Close Encounters. Over the years, Hanani performed many intimate concerts in Tavitian’s homes. He would choose a group of art pieces from Tavitian’s collection in advance, do his research, and arrange the music. Hanani would sometimes ask a colleague at the Metropolitan Opera and a pianist to join him. Sometimes, there were narrators, such as Richard Chamberlain and Jane Alexander. 

It felt like Renaissance Europe, where parties and social gatherings often featured music and art, says Hanani. “Aso recreated a whole world that was, in his own sweet way, hard to find.”

A RETURN TO THE CLARK

In 2011, the Clark exhibited a collection of Tavitian’s paintings in Eye to Eye, European Portraits, 1450 to 1850, drawn from his collection and curated by Morris and Richard Rand. At that time, Tavitian had been collecting for about a decade and agreed to have them borrow some of the artwork that lived in his homes. On opening day, he was thrilled to have these paintings on view and to talk to people about them the night of the opening event. 

He called the Clark a “hidden gem,” and it seems natural that he felt that it was the right place to house a significant portion of his collection. “He wanted these to hang together because he feels that each piece informs the other, and he wanted people to have the benefit of the interaction,” says Candace Beinecke, president of The Tavitian Foundation. “The Clark is a place where his collection will resonate. This was his dream, his choice.” 

The gifts from The Tavitian Foundation to the Clark are strong in the early era, from the 15th century to the 18th century (Renaissance, Baroque, and Rococo), with some great 19th century items, too. The Clark’s existing collection has a very strong 19th century representation. 

The portraiture acquired by the Clark includes important works by Parmigianino, Peter Paul Rubens, Elizabeth Vigée Lebrun, Jean-Honoré Fragonard, Jacques-Louis David, and others. There are also landscapes by Hubert Robert and Claude-Joseph Vernet, as well as religious paintings by artists including Jan van Eyck and Agnolo Bronzino. 

Tavitian’s gift also is rich in sculpture, which will bolster the collection that the Clark now has. These works include bronze, plaster, terracotta, marble, and other materials dating from the Renaissance through the late 19th-century by artists including Gian Lorenzo Bernini, Andrea della Robbia, Gil de Siloé, Clodion (Claude Michel), and Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux. 

A view from the interior of Aso Tavitian’s Prospect Hill Road home in Stockbridge when it was filled with exquisite artwork and finishings, as well as a look at the breathtaking grounds of the impressive home. It is on the market for $9.95 million, listed by Pat Melluzzo with Sotheby’s International Realty, Great Barrington. NICK LAROCHE FOR SOTHEBY’S INTERNATIONAL REALTY (2)

“It is changing entirely the sculpture collection of the Clark,” says Meslay. “The Clark has 65 or so sculptures, which is a small amount. We are tripling our sculpture with one gift. With the Tavitian gift, we are changing everything. It’s not only about changing the numbers, it’s changing the quality when it comes to sculpture. A lot of them are masterpieces.” 

A through-line in the list of pieces that the Clark obtained from Tavitian is their incredible provenance. One example is Houdon’s bust Little Lise. “It's signed and dated 1775, and it has a really incredible history, going back to the 18th century,” says the Clark’s Esther Bell. “One of the most famous art critics of the time wrote about seeing that sculpture, writing that he noticed something indescribable, something that could not be found in 100,000 faces. He’s talking about that specific object.” 

The curators are beginning to discuss the exhibition’s hang and display so they tell the story of Tavitian as a collector. Although very early in the process, they’re envisioning wonderful moments in the wing that reflect the visits in his homes where his collection was installed. To give a taste of what’s to come, they also are discussing ways to display a selection of objects from the collection in advance of the opening. 

PHILANTHROPY AND THE ARMENIAN PEOPLE

Tavitian’s philanthropic work goes well beyond art. He concentrated his attention on a certain number of groups; he served on the boards of The Frick and the Clark, as well as Austen Riggs Center, Berkshire Theatre Festival, and Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. In addition to Close Encounters With Music and the Mahaiwe, he also contributed to other Berkshire nonprofits such as Jacob’s Pillow, Tanglewood, Southern Berkshire Literacy Network, and Norman Rockwell Museum. He also was a generous benefactor of the Armenian Church. 

Eye to Eye, European Portraits, 1450 to 1850, at the Clark in 2011.

The generosity that his high school English teacher showed him in Beirut remained with him through the end of his life. The impetus of forming The Tavitian Foundation in the mid-1990s was to help pay for education for students of Armenian heritage by bringing them to colleges and music schools to study. The foundation currently funds The Tavitian Scholars Program at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University. The program provides a semester of education for mid-career Armenian government officials, with a goal of exposing them to innovative, global ways of thinking about foreign policy. 

“Aso was very much a humanist and very much an advocate of education, because that's how he defined himself, as a person who was well-educated and knew what was of value,” says Joyce Barsam, vice president of The Tavitian Foundation, who plays a critical role in The Tavitian Scholars Program. 

Barsam’s son, Ara, leads the recruitment of people from Armenia for the program. “Aso wanted the Armenian government to be full of dynamic, intelligent, and ethical leaders,” he says. 

The Tavitian Foundation has sponsored 22 groups at The Fletcher School with a total of 331 Tavitian Scholars who represent nearly 20 Armenian government ministries and agencies. Many of the people who have completed the program have risen to high government positions in Armenia, including ministers, judges, ambassadors, and members of parliament. A unique feature of the program is that participants are allowed to maintain their jobs and salaries, ensuring their return to Armenia. 

Along with attending classes at The Fletcher School, they took trips to Washington, D.C., to visit the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, as well as to Tavitian’s Manhattan home for dinner and a tour of the city. Towards the end of the program, they spent a weekend in the Berkshires, initially staying in the guesthouse on Tavitian’s property. The Tavitian Foundation later bought the home next door, once the residence of Jack and Jane Fitzpatrick, and it is now the foundation’s headquarters. Extensive work was done to the gardens and the interior of the home, and The Tavitian Scholars began staying there in 2019. 

Aso Tavitian with a group of Tavitian Scholars and others (taken in 2013 or earlier).

Their weekend with Tavitian included a barbecue to welcome and congratulate the scholars on their achievements. The next morning, they headed to the Norman Rockwell Museum, and then lunch at The Red Lion Inn. The evening would be a formal sit-down dinner in the library with speeches by Tavitian and the students. On the final morning, after brunch, they returned to Tufts. A few days after that, they flew home. The goal was to gain a holistic experience in the U.S., which included their exposure to American arts and culture. 

Tavitian’s presence continues to be felt among the alumni of the program, who keep in touch with one another and sometimes hold reunions in Armenia. After a hiatus because of Covid and Tavitian’s death, the program was restarted in 2024 and is promised at least another three-year run. The number of applicants has grown to 150 a year. Barsam, who is Armenian, has in the past welcomed the new scholars at her home when they arrived in Boston. She and Ara will be there once again in August to greet the latest class of 16 scholars. 

“He's still very much with us on this journey,” Ara says of Tavitian. “He got to know each of the students on an individual level. And while he can't do that now, he can continue to shape the trajectory of a nation. He can continue to change individuals’ lives, and that's a profound impact for a foundation to be able to have.”