Dick Turner was born July 28, 1932, in New Bedford, Mass., and died Sept. 9, 2011, in Cape May, N.J., of lymphoma.
A Fulbright scholar who also earned a Ph.D. in art and archaeology from Princeton, Dick had an irreverent sense of humor that flashed not only in his academic life but also on the Princeton Project 55 (now Alumni-
Corps) board. He was an instructor in fine arts at the University of Michigan, professor of art and archaeology at Princeton, dean of the faculty and professor of fine arts at Middlebury College, and president of Grinnell College from 1975 to 1979. He finished his career at New York University, where he held a number of positions, including director of the Institute of Fine Arts, dean of the faculty of arts and sciences, and Paulette Goddard professor in arts and humanities. He was a gifted writer, an art historian, and an avid environmentalist who served on the board of the New Jersey Audubon Society.
Dick was a Leonardo da Vinci scholar, an expert on the Florentine Renaissance, and the author of several books, including The Vision of Landscape in Renaissance Italy, The Art of Florence, and Inventing Leonardo (more on the class website).
The class sends sympathy to his wife, Jane; sons Louis and David; sister Betsy Turner; his grandchildren; and step-grandchildren.