David Koch, embraced as a patron of the arts, even as criticism developed

David H. Koch, whose death of his family was announced on Friday, was for some a polarizing character because of his generous support for conservative political causes that helped to advance libertarian ideas and the far right, while countering the science of climate change. But in cultural circles, it was largely uncontroversial, a result of his prodigious and generous support for the arts and his enthusiasm for institutions such as the Lincoln Center and the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

"They seem to appreciate it there and I like it," Koch said about the Lincoln Center 11 years ago, when he donated $ 100 million to this institution. "So, I think we have an agreement."

A man who praised his mother for fostering his love of the arts, he ended up donating tens of millions of dollars to various organizations, including the American Museum of Natural History and the National Museum of Natural History Smithsonian.

He has also sat on various cultural councils, doing silly things and galas, with people of different political tendencies. The long-standing decorum of such gatherings suggested that, like family Thanksgiving dinners, politics was generally not a polite topic of conversation.

This is how Mr. Koch was found standing on the Metropolitan Opera House's stage nine years ago, in black tie, and was applauded for his generosity to the American Ballet Theater at his gala. annual spring.

On each side of him: Blaine Trump and Caroline Kennedy Schlossberg.

The question of whether cultural councils will remain such a safe haven for administrators whose fortunes and politics incite outside criticism is a very open question, given the recent debates on Board members who sell opioids or ammunition. (Mr. Koch made his fortune in the chemical and fossil fuel industries.)

But on Friday, few members of the board of directors alongside Koch were attracted to this discussion.

Adrienne Arsht, Vice President of the Lincoln Center Board of Directors, said she had been related to Mr. Koch when they had sat on the board of directors. 39, administration of the American Ballet Theater in the 1980s. She remembered having attended a performance of "Cabaret" a few years ago with him and his wife, Julia Koch, where he was sitting at a coffee table and described the role of his mother in promoting her passion for the arts. She was a fan, he says, of many forms of art, including ballet, classical music, and opera.

"He spoke so loudly and lovingly about how his mother would take her and his brothers to New York to see the theater, and they were doing about five performances at the time," she recalls.

Mr. Koch's $ 100 million gift for the renovation of the New York State Theater at Lincoln Center in 2008 was a transformation, allowing for a complete renovation of the stage, complemented by an enlarged orchestra pit that mounts mechanically. He is known today at the David H. Koch Theater and remains a home for the New York City Ballet and the American Ballet Theater.

Mr. Koch had long been a fan of ballet. When he made his donation – at the time the largest private capital donation in Lincoln Center history – Mr. Koch said he had "been going to the New York State Theater for 40 years" and was " absolutely convinced that the quality of the work was world class. His wife sat on the board of the School of American Ballet, where Koch's daughter is registered. Mr. Koch is also the oldest member of the American Ballet Theater, having been a director for 25 years, and has donated more than $ 6 million to the company.

In making his gift to the national theater, Mr. Koch did not ask that the theater be renamed him in perpetuity. A new donor could be appointed, he said, after 50 years – the Koch family members retaining the right of first refusal – to allow the building to "regenerate itself with a major new fundraiser". he declared at the time. .

Mr. Koch's $ 65 million gift to the Metropolitan Museum of Art subscribed new design of its exterior entrance, now called David H. Koch Plaza. The renovation, which lasted two years and ended in 2012, included new fountains, pavers, lighting and seating.

Although Mr. Koch's policy may not have entered the boardroom, his role in the arts has not been without controversy. The name change of the Met Square after Mr. Koch prompted him events. Objections were raised about Mr. Koch's seat on the board of directors of the American Museum of Natural History, given his support for organizations fighting climate change.