Description
Alice Lowe was born in Portland, Oregon, in 1922 and is a long-term volunteer with the Asian Art Museum. While working for famed “adman” Howard Gossage, Lowe volunteered as part of the first class of docents for the Brundage Collection when it opened to the public in 1966. She eventually served as a commissioner on the San Francisco Asian Art Commission from 1985 to 1999. In this interview, Ms. Lowe discusses her upbringing in Portland’s Chinatown, her education at Reed College, and her subsequent move to live in San Francisco as a young woman. She provides insight into the personalities of several key founders of the Asian Art Museum, including Yvon d’Argencé, Jim Gerstley, and others; and she discusses community outreach and changes in the funding of the museum.