collection

Museum Profile: Paula and Phillip Kirkeby

Paula and Phillip Kirkeby are consummate collectors.

Phillip's antique silver and porcelain collections provide an engrossing diversion from his successful Palo Alto engineering firm, Advanced Vacuum Technology. Paula's collection of exquisite, history-laden beads, some nearly 3,000 years old, give her both a hobby and adornment. Together they collect automobiles. That started with Phillip's Jaguar XK140 Roadster, which he bought in 1956 just because he liked it - but could not drive for one year because he had to learn how first.

Phillip, born in Wisconsin of Danish parents and raised in Copenhagen from the age of eight months until he returned to the U.S. at 27, now focuses more on the porcelain and fine silver he collects. These pieces, from Sung and Ming Sung Dynasties to 16th through 20th century Europe, entice him into research that takes him, intellectually, around the world and through the ages.

Phillip and Paula have many interests, but their deep appreciation of fine art is primary to them and is what brought them together. Their love of music and art, especially the Cobra school of painting (Copenhagen-Brussels-Amsterdam artists of the mid-1990's such as Karel Appel) led them into friendship, then marriage, and ultimately into a partnership in collecting art and opening Smith Andersen Gallery and associated press, and Smith Anderson Editions, both in Palo Alto.

Their avid collecting along with the urging of an artist friend gave them reason to open Smith Andersen Gallery in 1969. Since they were putting all their money and much of their energy into buying art, opening a gallery made sense. Painter Adja Yunkers encouraged them and advised them in everything. "While it has been a roller-coaster ride of ups and downs," Paula said, "it has been worth it. The gallery has been the best experience of my life. I love the artists, the collectors, even the building we are in."

Paula runs the gallery, named after Phillip's mother, drawing on her vast array of skills and experience, including owning and operating a nursery school. Phillip did his share: For the first 10 years he supported the gallery -- which was basically philanthropic because there was no profit -- with his income from Varian, where he worked 24 years before opening his own firm.

The Kirkebys gave their support to the de Saisset Museum by lending a print from their personal collection for the German Expressionist Woodcut exhibition here in 1980. They decided the de Saisset should own the work, thus making the first of many gifts to the museum. Their efforts for the museum since then have gone beyond donations -- they have helped with fundraisers and exhibitions and given advice when needed.

When they opened Smith Andersen Editions, a press where artists create monotypes and other fine-art prints, the Kirkebys asked Georgianna Lagoria, then director of the de Saisset Museum, if she wanted the de Saisset to be an archive for the press. Paula explained: "When an edition gets printed, there is always a museum proof. Also, the museum gets one monotype from each artist every time he or she works at Smith Andersen."

As respected artists from throughout the U.S. create works at the press, prints go into the de Saisset's collection. The Kirkebys see these museum proofs as a good foundation, a core, to attract other donors, thus building a strong collection of works on paper from the 1970s onward.

Phillip and Paula did not leave this dream for the museum to chance. As they help other art lovers develop their collections, the Kirkebys encourage them to make gifts of their own. James and Maria Cockrum and David Devine are among the collectors that the Kirkebys have directed to the de Saisset.

While the Kirkebys support other California art institutions, their connection to the de Saisset is special. Paula said, "Our involvement with the de Saisset came about because we looked at many museums in the Bay Area, and non seemed as supportive of artists living and working in California. Even though the museum is not that regional, we felt it was important that someone pay attention to the artists around here. The de Saisset had an energy and a caring that we liked. Also, Phillp became a Catholic in Denmark and went to a Jesuit University in Europe, so he really likes being involved with a Catholic University. That is special for him."

Georgianna Legoria emphasized the value of the Kirkeby's contributions to the de Saisset.

"You can not downplay Paula and Phillip's importance, because they are the most established dealers of contemporary art between Santa Barbara and San Francisco. Look at Paula's stature as a dealer of contemporary art: She's hooked into an international network of artists, collectors, and dealers," said Lagoria. "They have a way of helping the art community that is very direct. That is rare. They do it out of love for artists and art. The are very pure in that way."