Richard P. Wunder, art historian, was born in Ardmore, Pennsylvania. He developed an interest in art while traveling with his mother in Europe. Wunder pursued this interest at Harvard, earning his bachelors, masters, and doctorate degrees in fine art. Between his studies, Wunder served in the army during WWII and the Korean War. After receiving his doctorate, Wunder became the Curator of Drawings and Prints at Cooper Union Museum, serving in this position from 1955-1964. He then went on to become the Curator of Painting and Sculpture for the National Collection of Fine Arts, Smithsonian from 1964-1968. Wunder returned to New York City as the Director for the Cooper-Hewitt Museum of Design from 1968-1970. During the 1970s, he taught at Middlebury College. He later became president of appraisals for Christie, Manson & Woods before retiring in 1990 to La Jolla, California. Richard Wunder died in 2002, at the age of 79.