Joan Kaplan Davidson, Philanthropist Who Championed New York, Dies at 96

Joan Kaplan Davidson, a preservationist and philanthropist who set projects in motion that upgraded the quality of life in New York City, died on Friday in Hudson, N.Y. She was 96.

Her son John Matthew Davidson confirmed the death, in a hospital. He did not specify a cause, saying simply that “her heart gave out.”

Ms. Davidson served as chairwoman of the New York State Council on the Arts in the 1970s and as New York State parks…