Page 128 - South Mississippi Living - December, 2018

GIVING BACK mad potter
story by Kelsey Sunderman-Foster photos courtesy of Ohr-O’Keefe Museum of Art
One of Highway 90’s most notable landmarks is the Ohr-O’Keefe Museum of Art, which houses the works of Biloxi’s own “Mad Potter,” George Ohr. While the art inside the museum is amazing, the building itself is a work of art.
Designed by famed architect Frank Gehry, the Ohr-O’Keefe Museum’s bold design truly
fits the character of George
Ohr. “Gehry designed an award-winning campus of
bold, intriguing, self-sufficient structures,” said Ohr-O’Keefe Executive Director Kevin O’Brien. “The four new buildings and the reconstructed home of Pleasant Reed offer visitors separate, but not isolated experiences.”
The building’s design has set the museum among the ranks of many other famous architectural marvels, including Gehry’s Guggenheim Museum and Walt Disney Concert Hall designs.
The museum’s distinctive quality carries throughout the property, making it a true oasis of the
arts. “We invite you to enjoy all that makes our museum unique: the artists, the architecture, the history, and the landscape,” O’Brien says. “Ten years in the making, the Ohr-O’Keefe Museum of Art celebrates the innovative,
independent and creative spirit of our namesake Mississippi master potter George Ohr. Just as Ohr
rose from devastating personal and professional loss to create an extraordinary body of work, so too the Ohr-O’Keefe has risen from Hurricane Katrina’s destruction. We view this process as an homage to the enduring human spirit.”
Ohr is known for his body of ceramic works, which many say helped to define the aesthetic conventions of 19th century America. Ohr is considered an early leader in the modernist movement and it is his creative spirit which inspires the mission of the Ohr-O’Keefe Museum: to promote and preserve the unique legacy of Biloxi potter George
E. Ohr and the diverse cultural heritage of the Mississippi Gulf Coast.
“His extraordinary cultural legacy is recognized for its power and integrity and for its important influence on the art world,” O’Brien said. “Ohr’s work was rediscovered in the 1960s and is admired by artists and collectors alike.”
Ohr-O’Keefe Museum of Art | 386 Beach Boulevard, Biloxi, 39530 | 228.374.5547 | www.georgeohr.org
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George Ohr