The American Academy in Rome notes with sadness the death of Nancy Brown Negley, a noted artist, philanthropist, and Trustee Emerita whose generosity and vision made a lasting mark on the Academy. She died on July 16, 2022, at the age of 94.
Negley served on the Academy’s Board of Trustees from 2000 to 2008. In 2018 the Nancy B. Negley Rome Prize was established in her honor. This award has been given to Karyn Olivier (2019), John Jesurum (2020), Jennifer Packer (2021), and Autumn Knight (2022). She also established a residency program for artists in 2006 at the Dora Maar House in Ménerbes, France, funded by the Brown Foundation. Three hundred artists from over twenty-five countries have participated.
Negley served on the boards of numerous museums, including the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, the San Antonio Museum of Art, the Dia Art Foundation, and the Whitney Museum of American Art, as well as other cultural organizations such as the Brown Foundation, the World Monuments Fund, and the National Trust for Historic Preservation. She was the first woman to be vice chairman of the Texas Democratic Party. In 2011, the French Government recognized Negley as a chevalier of the Legion of Honor her support of the arts in France.
Memorial contributions can be sent to the Nancy B. Negley Artists Residency Program, 2121 Sage Road, Houston, TX 77056, or to the charity of one’s choice.