George Oprescu

George Oprescu was a Romanian historian, art critic and collector. Born into a poor family, he developed a taste for the fine arts early in life, as well as for the French language, which he taught into his forties. Subsequently, working for the League of Nations, he turned his attention to art history, becoming a professor in the field at the University of Bucharest in 1931. He was also a museum curator and magazine editor, and in 1949 established the Institute of Art History, which he led for two decades until his death. His substantial private collection is now in the hands of various institutions, while his written body of work helped lay the foundation for art history to become a serious discipline in his country.