Romare Bearden Kara Walker Jacob Lawrence Hank Willis Thomas Edward M Bannister Kerry James Marshall Nick Cave Kalup Linzy in New York

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Gutted in the July 29 blaze, Peggy Cooper Cafritz’s $5.2 million mansion in the Kent neighborhood of northwest Washington held more than 300 sculptures, paintings, photographs, and other pieces that she had painstakingly accumulated over the past two decades, often from artists whose careers she had personally nurtured. Included were works of 19th- and 20th-century painters like Edward Mitchell Bannister, Jacob Lawrence, and Romare Bearden as well as contemporary work by such artists as Hank Willis Thomas, Nick Cave, Kara Walker, and Kerry James Marshall. Virtually everything was destroyed in the fire, which occurred while Cafritz was away on vacation. Jack Shainman, a New York gallery owner, says the blaze destroyed “a singular vision.” For now, Cafritz says, she cannot bear to think about starting over with her collection. “I know I will, but it’s too soon,” she says.

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