The Pearlman Collection donation of Impressionist, Post-Impressionist, and Modern artworks to the Brooklyn Museum, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), and the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York has redefined access to one of the most significant private collections of European art. The Henry and Rose Pearlman Foundation announced that the collection, built over three decades, will be permanently divided among the three institutions, while allowing for flexible circulation of works. The Brooklyn Museum will receive 29 pieces, including Modigliani’s portraits Jean Cocteau (1916) and Limestone Head (c.1910–11). LACMA will acquire six works, among them Van Gogh’s Tarascon Stagecoach (1888) and Manet’s Young Woman in a Round Hat (c.1877–79). MoMA will receive 28 works, most by Cézanne, including Mont Sainte-Victoire (1904–06), Cistern in the Park of Château Noir (c.1900), and 15 watercolors. Before their transfer, the works will tour in Village Square: Gifts of Modern Art from the Pearlman Collection, opening at LACMA in February 2026 and traveling to Brooklyn in fall 2026, with MoMA to follow. The gift embodies the Pearlmans’ legacy of public access and collaborative stewardship.
Henry Pearlman’s journey as a collector began in 1945 when he acquired Chaïm Soutine’s Village Square, Céret (1921–22) at a New York auction.
Pearlman later recalled, “I would get a lift, similar to the experience of listening to a symphony orchestration of a piece well-known and liked.”
That purchase inspired a lifelong pursuit of modern art. Over the following three decades, Pearlman assembled works by Van Gogh, Modigliani, Renoir, Manet, Pissarro, Gauguin, Degas, and Toulouse-Lautrec, with a particular emphasis on Cézanne. Reflecting on the impact of collecting, he said, “I haven’t spent a boring evening since that first purchase.”
Henry and Rose Pearlman established their foundation in 1955 to manage and exhibit the collection. The works were shown in exhibitions across the United States, including at the Baltimore Museum of Art and the Fogg Museum at Harvard University. A major exhibition at the Brooklyn Museum in 1974 coincided with Henry Pearlman’s death. Since 1976, the collection has been on long-term loan to the Princeton University Art Museum, which has facilitated international loans and research.
Daniel Edelman, president of the Foundation, outlined the reasoning behind the distribution: “We ultimately chose the Brooklyn Museum for the works that tell Henry’s story of discovery and for its commitment to engaging a diverse community; LACMA for works that specifically enhance their ability to innovate around bringing art to where people are; and MoMA, where Cézanne’s works on paper will be shared and cared for by one of the finest departments of drawings and prints that we know, as well as a half dozen of his paintings that together support the artist’s foundational role in the story of modern art.”
The Brooklyn Museum will receive Modigliani’s portrait Jean Cocteau and his limestone sculpture Head, alongside works by Gauguin, Degas, Soutine, and Toulouse-Lautrec.
Anne Pasternak, Shelby White and Leon Levy Director of the museum, stated, “We’re thrilled to welcome this extraordinary gift from the Pearlman Collection, the most significant addition to our European art holdings in nearly a century. Henry Pearlman collected with the public in mind, believing that modern art should inspire audiences of all backgrounds.”
LACMA’s share includes Manet’s Young Woman in a Round Hat and Van Gogh’s Tarascon Stagecoach. Michael Govan, CEO and Wallis Annenberg Director, explained, “LACMA is deeply grateful to welcome these masterpieces to the museum’s collection, and especially for van Gogh and Manet, two towering figures of 19th-century art, whose paintings will be represented in our collection for the first time. It is also an honor to help fulfill Henry and Rose’s wish to share their collection with our vast public.”
MoMA will receive 28 works, focused on Cézanne, including Mont Sainte-Victoire, Cistern in the Park of Château Noir, and 15 watercolors.
Glenn D. Lowry, The David Rockefeller Director of MoMA, remarked, “This generous gift significantly expands MoMA’s collection of works by Cézanne and Degas, and underscores the enduring legacy of Henry and Rose’s vision. We are honored to work with our colleagues in Los Angeles and Brooklyn to ensure that the Pearlmans’ commitment to research, scholarship, and access, and their belief in the artists they acquired, will continue to inspire the public now and in the future.”
Edelman highlighted the guiding principle behind the donation: “Rather than put conditions on the gift that would become limiting in a future that none of us can know, we created a set of guidelines to encourage these three institutions to collaborate on a flexible movement of the art among them. Our aim is to bring these major works to new audiences, allowing them to be seen in different contexts, reuniting our collection’s works with one another on a regular basis, and perhaps even inspiring collectors and museums to consider new models for ownership of art.”
Before entering their permanent homes, the works will be shown in the exhibition Village Square: Gifts of Modern Art from the Pearlman Collection to the Brooklyn Museum, LACMA, and MoMA. It will open at LACMA in February 2026, travel to the Brooklyn Museum in fall 2026, and later be presented at MoMA.
