Thomas and Jan Pavlovic: Shaker Collectors

Alumni couple builds noteworthy collection of Shaker furniture.

In 1968 Thomas Pavlovic ’64, ’67 MD, ’73 GME, ’75 GME was drafted to serve as medical adviser for the U.S. Embassy in Germany. Tom and his wife, Jan Solomon Pavlovic ’65, returned home a few years later with a renewed sense of patriotism, which inspired a tour of American historical sites. One day, they visited the restored Shaker Village of Pleasant Hill in Harrodsburg, Ky., where they were blown away by the thoughtful functionalism of Shaker furniture. It was there they bought their first Shaker chair. “Their design philosophy is absolutely informed by their religious values,” says Tom. “Even everyday work items had to be done perfectly, without distractions, in the eyes of the Lord.” The Pavlovics, who live in Winnetka, Ill., have continued to build their collection of Shaker-made objects for more than 40 years, attending auctions and working with dealers. Their collection has been featured in several museums and is now on view at the Art Institute of Chicago through Dec. 3. The couple attributes their passion for historical artifacts to inspirational Northwestern professors like the late Ray Billington ’71 H, a historian of the American West and a mentor to Tom both in and out of the classroom.