Barry Art Museum to receive major gift of Waitzer glass collection
The Barry Art Museum at
Old Dominion University will receive 165 glass sculptures from the Leah and Richard Waitzer Foundation, which will more than double the museum’s glass collection.
The pieces — 20th century and contemporary glass — come from the late couple’s three sons, Eddie, Brad and Scott, directors of the Waitzer foundation.
The elder Waitzers were prominent philanthropists and civic leaders, and avid patrons of the arts. They gave generously to the Chrysler Museum of Art, Virginia Symphony and Eastern Virginia Medical School. Richard Waitzer died in 2019; Leah Waitzer died in 2021, months after a building named after the family opened at
EVMS.
“Leah and Richard were enthusiastic, decisive, and knowledgeable collectors, and they taught us a great deal,” said Barry Museum co-founder Richard Barry, in a statement. Added
his wife, Carolyn: “We enjoyed the thrill of the hunt with them.”
The gift includes works from some of the most well-known names in glass, including Louis
Comfort Tiffany, Frederick Carder, Émile Gallé and Nancy Daum Frères. There is a particular emphasis on early studio glass sculptures, and 12 pieces track the career of Harvey Littleton, who is considered the founder of the American Studio Glass movement, which started in the 1960s. Other early innovators and pioneers represented in the collection are Dominick Labino, Marvin Lipofsky and Toots Zynsky.
“We are delighted that these remarkable pieces will remain here in Hampton Roads on the ODU campus to honor their legacy through education,” said Charlotte Potter Kasic, executive director of the Barry Art Museum. “The Waitzers were visionary — and mentors to many of us in the field. They inspired our own founders and set a precedent for art appreciation across Norfolk and the region.”
The Barry is planning an exhibition of the Waitzer collection for spring 2023 and will establish a gallery dedicated to their philanthropy.