Obituary: Thomas N. Armstrong / Opened Warhol museum after Whitney tenure
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Thomas N. Armstrong
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Thomas N. Armstrong III, who as director of the Whitney Museum of American Art became friends with Andy Warhol and eventually opened the Pittsburgh museum that honors the city's best known native artist, died Monday in New York City. He was 78, and the cause of death was cardiac arrest.
"He was a whirlwind of activity," said Alice Snyder, an art adviser who lives in Squirrel Hill.
As Mr. Armstrong's staff assistant, Ms. Snyder helped him open The Andy Warhol Museum in May 1994 -- seven years after the artist's death. Nine months later, Mr. Armstrong left Pittsburgh after clashing with Ellsworth Brown, then head of the Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh. The two men disagreed over the direction of the Warhol museum.
"He got the museum up and running. That was a feat in itself," Ms. Snyder said.
Together, Mr. Armstrong and Ms. Snyder planned the legendary opening party that included an effervescent mix of Warhol buddies Billy Name and Ultra Violet, Pittsburgh society, international art collectors and locals.
The opening weekend set a standard, said Milton Fine, who is a member of The Andy Warhol Museum's board.
"I'm sure there has never been a party like that in Pittsburgh," Mr. Fine said. "There were lights and action and famous people and just so much spirit and energy. It was phenomenal. People were dressed in outlandish ways."
Mr. Armstrong arrived here in April 1993 after his 15-year tenure at the Whitney in New York City ended with the board dismissing him in 1990. By then, he had raised the collection's quality and quantity by acquiring more than 2,000 works by artists who played important roles in the evolution of American art. He also mounted two shows at the Whitney devoted to Warhol: a 1971 retrospective and a 1979 show that focused on commissioned portraits.
First Published June 23, 2011 12:00 am
