Jonathan Leo Fairbanks

Who is Jonathan Leo Fairbanks?

Jonathan Leo Fairbanks is an American artist and expert of American arts and antiques. Fairbanks created the American Decorative Arts and Sculpture department at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, and served as the Curator of the department from 1970-1999.

Fairbanks is the son of the American sculptor, Avard Fairbanks. He was born in Ann Arbor while his father was teaching at the University of Michigan. He is also an eleventh generation descendant of English colonist Jonathan Fairbanks.

Fairbanks is on the Board of Directors of the Fairbanks Family in America, Inc., which owns and operates the house. He earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of Utah and his MFA from the University of Pennsylvania through a joint program with the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts. He earned a second Masters degree, an M.A. in American Culture, from the University of Delaware in the Winterthur Museum Fellowship Program. He served at the museum as an Associate Curator in charge of conservation for nine years.

Fairbanks has served as curator for several exhibits, including "Becoming a Nation, Americana from the Diplomatic Reception Rooms, U.S.