AN EXPANSIVE VISION

In its mission to be representative of a century of American art, the O’Brien Art Foundation has amassed a revelatory collection of modernist works.

- Chris Walther

Francis Criss (1909-1973), Americana, 1933. Oil on masonite, 21½ x 334 in. The Marty O'Brien Collection of American Art.

Based in the Pittsburgh area, the O'Brien Art Foundation's mission “is to foster the preservation, understanding and appreciation of 20th-century American art beyond the accepted canon” through its efforts “to acquire, research, conserve, exhibit and loan works of art—in addition to supporting education, scholarship and publishing.” The foundation is a charitable organization formed in 2019 by long-time collector Marty O’Brien, whose vision is to create an encyclopedic repository of works across a variety of media by American artists from the late 19th century through 1985. The foundation believes that a 40-year historical reflection is helpful to contextualizing the art of any era. Rather than focusing on the most prominent artists as defined by today’s standards, the foundation acquires and presents the best examples of art produced by artists who were significant during their lifetime, but who have fallen outside the current art historical canon. The foundation maintains its own collection and represents Mr. O'Brien's personal collection. Together, the two collections contain over 1200 objects with many of the works being housed in original or period frames, which is a point of emphasis for the foundation.

Knud Merrild (1894-1954), Alpha & Omega, 1935. Oil cloth, paper, magazine and newspaper cutouts, pen and ink on board, 24 x 30 in. O'Brien Art Foundation.