Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Drawings To Be On Display

Over a period of 35 years, private collector William B. O'Neal assembled a remarkable collection of old master and modern drawings dating from the sixteenth through the twentieth century.

Fifty-seven drawings from this diverse collection will be on view at the Arkansas Arts Center January 10 through February 23 in Drawings from the O'Neal Collection.

Focusing on the work of Continental and British artists, the exhibition includes architectural and stage designs as well as fine British Victorian and pre-Raphaelite drawings from the second half of the nineteenth century.

Artists represented in the exhibition include John Ruskin, Sir Edward Coley Burne-Jones, Simeon Solomon and Fedric, Lord Leighton.

"In collecting, Professor O'Neal was not so concerned with seeking out specific artist as in choosing works that pleased him," said Margaret Morgan Crasselli, curator of old master drawings for the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., and co-curator of the exhibition. "His collection covers an extraordinary broad range of artists, styles, subjects and media, all of which for a variety of reasons attracted him and engaged his heart."

Born in Zanesville, Ohio, in 1907, O'Neal trained as an architect at the Carnegie Institute of Technology in Pittsburgh. He also studied as the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts.

O'Neal joined the army in 1942 and served for three years in London and Paris drawing maps. In his free time, he frequented museums and art dealers. Folowing the war in 1946, O'Neal started teaching in the School of Architecture at the University of Virginia. Before his death in 1994 at the age of 87, he was professor emeritus of architectural history of the university.

Over the years, his collection grew slowly as funds and opportunities permitted. In all, O'Neal donated 322 works to the National Gallery, where his collection is housed.

Drawing from the O'Neal Collection is organized by the National Lending Service of the National Gallery of Arts. Washington, D.C.

Sponsors for the exhibition are Rebsamen Fund; Sandra and Bob Connor; and Helen and James T. Dyke.

The Arts Center, the largest cultural institution in the state, is committed to presenting diverse cultural values, promoting the growth and understanding of the arts and providing inspiration.