Biloxi museum fund instituted

A memorial fund honoring curator and art collector David Whitney will help rebuild an art museum in Biloxi, Miss., that was under construction when it was severely damaged by Hurricane Katrina in August.

Whitney, who died of cancer in June at the age of 66, was a consulting curator for the Ohr-O’Keefe Museum, designed by Frank Gehry. The museum is named for Biloxi native and art potter George E. Ohr and former Biloxi Mayor Jerry O’Keefe.

The Biloxi museum, initially scheduled to open in July, is now slated to be completed in about two years. The centerpiece will be four pod-like gallery pavilions featuring the work of Ohr (1857-1918), who was known as the Mad Potter of Biloxi.

Gehry’s museum design included several pavilions arranged around 26 ancient live oaks on a 4-acre site. Sixteen of the oaks survived Hurricane Katrina.

O’Keefe said insurance will cover much of the repair cost. The original budget for the museum project was $30 million. For more information, visit www.georgeohr.org.