Jan Cowles Mrs. Jan Cowles (wife of Mr. Gardner Cowles) is seen at her apartment, amid her impressive contemporary art collection, in 1979. For her outstanding patronage, the New Museum of Contemporary Art in New York honored her in 2003. She is also an honorary trustee of the Miami Art Museum.
not wearing my jewelry, then people feel like I’m talking down to them. People expect to see Mrs. Astor, not some dowdy old lady, and I don’t intend to disappoint.” Influence is what matters when it comes to bolstering the causes of the city, from the cultural (like the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the New York Public Library) to the humanitarian (like the Animal Medical Center). Influence, coupled with generosity—boundless generosity. Because, as 138 QUEST
Mark Lasker said, “Without money, nothing gets done.” Together, these icons (who have been photographed by the esteemed Harry Benson) served to enrich the narrative of New York, from Manhattan’s Lincoln Center to the Bronx’s New York Botanical Garden. This collection of portraits is Quest’s “Thank You” to these philanthropists whose money and time, teamed with their passion and public personas, served to construct the character of the city that we love. —Elizabeth Quinn Brown