It really does come in 'threes'

The past two weeks have seen the passing of three people who each contributed much to Art History: scholastically, in a curatorial sense and creatively.

• Anne Coffin Hanson, 82, was the very first woman to become a fully-tenured professor at Yale University. Dr. Hanson was an authority on 19th and 20th-century French and Italian art, as well as the first woman in an Ivy League school to become a department head. I feel safe in speaking for many other women by expressing gratitude for her contributions to both art and 'us'.
• John Hunt, 47, was an art historian, author, and founder/director of The Hunt Museum in Limerick, Ireland.
• Frank Thomas, 92, spent 42 years as an animation artist for Disney, one of those fondly dubbed "The Nine Old Men" by Walt himself. Mr. Thomas brought us all such scenes as Thumper teaching Bambi to 'skate' and two dogs 'kissing' over spaghetti in "Lady and the Tramp". As Disney no longer seems to care how many artists it has thrown out of work in the country that made it a global corporation, I'm thankful for reminders that it used to care, and thankful, Mr. Thomas, for the happy visual memories you provided me and mine.