"John P. Axelrod, age 79, of Boston, was fatally struck while walking his dog Tale on January 3, 2026. Mr. Axelrod, son of the late Harry and Evelyn Axelrod, grew up in Andover and attended Phillips Academy, Yale University, and Harvard Law School. He was a prominent Boston art collector, philanthropist, and a generous supporter and passionate advocate for underrepresented artists."
"He was a major philanthropist and benefactor of the Museum of Fine Arts and had been part of the MFA community since the 1980s. The John Axelrod Collection established in 2011 at the MFA contains nearly 70 works by Black artists, leaving behind a legacy of generosity and artistic enrichment at the MFA where his gifts reshaped the institution's collection."
John P. Axelrod, 79, of Boston, was fatally struck while walking his dog Tale on January 3, 2026; the dog also died that day. He grew up in Andover and attended Phillips Academy, Yale University, and Harvard Law School. He was a major Boston art collector, philanthropist, and advocate for underrepresented artists and began donating to the Museum of Fine Arts in 1985. The John Axelrod Collection at the MFA, established in 2011, contains nearly 70 works by Black artists, and his gifts—totaling nearly 700 works—included 20th-century decorative arts. He loved Australian terriers and is survived by partner Darwin Cordoba, sisters Jane and Nancy Axelrod, niece Ariel Axelrod-Hahn, and nephew Nicholas Pan.
Read at Boston.com
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