A Collector’s Legacy: Dr. Luther W. Brady’s Gift to GW

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 3, 2025

MEDIA CONTACT:
Olivia Kohler-Maga okohlergwu[dot] edu(okohler[at]gwu[dot]edu)

WASHINGTON (October 23, 2025) - When Dr. Brady, a GW alumnus and Board of Trustees member, found an artist's work he liked, he would collect many works by that artist, building a wonderful collection of paintings, drawings, prints, and sculptures by artists found in Art History textbooks. He knew his decision to leave a large group of over 150 pieces of art to his alma mater would transform both their art collection and the opportunities that GW would be able to offer students at the institution he cared for deeply.

One opportunity was a graduate Art History seminar taught by Professor Bibiana Obler that focused on private collecting. The students did in depth research on specific pieces in the collection that was translated into text for a 2023 exhibition held at the Luther W. Brady Art Gallery in the Corcoran Flagg Building, as well as included in a recently published catalogue, Luther W. Brady: A Collector's Legacy. Professor Obler writes, "Olivia Kohler-Maga reached out to me to teach a class in conjunction with her exhibition on Luther Brady's generous donation of modern and contemporary art. Thanks to her initiative, students had the opportunity to get first-hand experience contributing to an exhibition and exhibition catalogue…The practical applications motivated students to do substantial primary research on artists like Friedel Dzubas and Lynn Chadwick; at the same time, the class as a whole learned about 20th-century modernism through the lens of a particular collector."

Celebrating not just Dr. Brady's enduring legacy at his alma mater, the catalogue also commemorates the use of the GW collection for hands-on learning as well as highlights the opportunities for future collaborative projects and student research.