Armand Milton Oppenheimer, DDS

Who was Armand M. Oppenheimer?

Shortly after Armand and I were married in October, 1958, I decided to rearrange the family closets. Tucked away in a far corner I found a huge portfolio of drawings and prints, I did not need to read the signature to know that this was Armand's work, the designs were distinctive. He then told me that during the four years that he attended City College as an undergraduate, he was also a student at the New York Academy of Arts. He wanted to be an artist, and though his professional title is D.D.S. (Doctor of Dental Surgery), he achieved his artistic ambition in his professional work in his jewelry making and photography.

Armand was born in Manhattan in 1906. His parents were practical people who urged him to choose a professional career. He went to the Columbia College of Dentistry, and graduated In 1930. He was teaching dental anatomy at the College when controversy arose over a prehistoric mandible discovered in South Africa. It attracted world-wide attention.

The dentition of the mandible was that of a hominid, the jaw was that of an ape. Dr. Raymond Dart who was first to see the specimen called it Australopithicus or southern ape. His discovery was widely hailed and Armand became deeply involved in the study of early man.

At about this time Armand was asked to give the Orthodontics course at Columbia. Orthodontia then was a field where cosmetics was the primary objective. Armand said he could teach the course as human evolutionary development. For fifty-one years Armand taught a course in human development at Columbia University School of Dentistry. It was a mandatory course and even students who dreaded anything did not have practical value, said that it was an enlightening experience, essential to their work. Armand became a member of the New York Academy of Science, and he had papers published in American Anthropologist and Current Anthropology.

Armand died in 1992. I'm glad that we had 35 years together and that we went to many places In Africa we were stunned by the beauty, the amazing wildlife, and the exotic people we encountered. South America revealed great civilizations and Europe enriched us with its art and romance.

Vicki Oppenheimer

This is the Home Page for Armand Oppenheimer's work. The following pages have been developed so far, with many more to come.

All material on this page is copyrighted by Violet Oppenheimer on behalf of the estate of Armand Oppenheimer. None of the material on this site may be reproduced in any form without permission. Please contact the Estate of Dr. Oppenheimer for details.