Wright S. Ludington

It was here that he first met Lockwood de Forest Jr., who would go on to become a renowned landscape architect and lifelong friend of Ludington who would also design the gardens at his estate, Val Verde, located in Montecito, California.

At the request of his father and possibly as a distraction from his grief over his mother, Ludington was sent on a “grand tour” of Europe and was accompanied by his good friend Lockwood de Forest.

[3] It is said that the gardens and the reflecting pools at this home were loosely adapted from features found at Roman Emperor Hadrian's Villa at Tivoli.

Through his collecting activity, Ludington developed relationships with Alfred Stieglitz, Georgia O'Keeffe, Gaston Lachaise, and Graham Sutherland, among others.

Ludington also served as the museum's first vice president, a position he shared with fellow philanthropist Katharine McCormick.

After his service in World War II teaching camouflage painting to the troops, Ludington continued to take on leadership roles at the museum, first commissioning de Forest to redesign the landscaping, and later becoming the institution's president in 1951.