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.

“His legacy will live on at the Museum through the John Axelrod Collection — a transformative acquisition including Archibald Motley, Henry Ossawa Tanner, Alan Rohan Crite, Loïs Mailou Jones, and Kerry James Marshall," the MFA’s statement said.

He is ranked among the most prominent supporters of the MFA, donating nearly 700 works to the museum, according to a 2014 press statement by the MFA, including several collections of 20th-century decorative arts from Europe and the United States.

He donated his first works to the MFA in 1985; his donations to the museum often covered areas of art that he felt were underappreciated, but he maintained that those areas should not be trivialized or dismissed.

He had a lifelong love for dogs, particularly Australian terriers. He adored his dog, Tale, who also passed on January 3. Previous beloved terrier companions included Myrna, Lovey, Malky, and Tina.

He was survived by his devoted partner of 44 years Darwin Cordoba; his dear sisters, Jane Axelrod and her husband Roy Dobbelaar and Nancy Axelrod; and a loving niece Ariel Axelrod-Hahn and nephew Nicholas Panagopoulos.

Services will be held at Temple Emanuel, 7 Haggetts Pond Road, Andover on Thursday, January 8 at 1:00 PM. Interment will follow at Temple Emanuel Cemetery, Lawrence.

Condolence calls may be made following the interment at the Andover Inn at Phillips Academy Andover. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the MSPCA – Angell Animal Medical Center, 350 S. Huntington Avenue, Boston, MA 02130, or to the Addison Gallery of American Art – Phillips Academy, 3 Chapel Avenue, Andover, MA 01810.