Agnes Gund – Credit: Damon Winter/NY Times
The Board of Trustees and Officers of the National Institute of Social Sciences are saddened to inform you of the death of 2010 Gold Medal Honoree Agnes Gund. Ms Gund passed away on September 18, 2025 in New York City. She was 87 years old.
Ms Gund was an American philanthropist and arts patron, avid collector of modern and contemporary art, and staunch advocate for arts education, women’s issues, the environment, and social justice. She was President Emerita and Life Trustee of the Museum of Modern Art and Chairman of its International Council. She was a board member of MoMA PS1 and founder of Studio in a School.
Ms Gund was awarded the National Institute’s Gold Honor Medal in 2010 for her philanthropic activities and strong advocacy of the arts. Subsequently, Ms Gund continued her active career of social advocacy and arts philanthropy, famously selling Roy Lichtenstein's Masterpiece in 2017 in order to provide $100 million in seed funding for the Art for Justice Fund, which supports criminal justice reform and seeks to reduce mass incarceration in the United States. Ms Gund remained a close and generous friend of the National Institute and attended many of our events and galas over the years, including the 2024 Gold Medal Gala last year.
Agnes Gund with 2024 Gold Medal Honoree Bryan Stevenson, Christopher Walling, and four of her grandchildren.
Ms Gund led an active life of service, serving on many boards and philanthropic organizations. She received many honors as well, including the National Medal of the Arts and the first-ever Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg Woman of Leadership Award, which was given to her by Justice Ginsburg herself. The Trustees of the National Institute feel privileged to have been able to recognize her for her service too. We extend our sincere condolences to all her surviving family. Rest in peace.
Further Reading:
Agnes Gund, Who Oversaw a Major Expansion of MoMA, Dies at 87