Art Collector, Museum Builder Nasher Dies

Raymond Nasher, who built a public home for his vast collection of modern and contemporary sculpture, died in Dallas at the age of 85.

Nasher's life as a dedicated collector began after he moved to Texas with his wife, Patsy, and she bought him a Jean Arp bronze, "Torso With Buds," for his birthday, The New York Times said.

He became one of the first developer to include art in commercial and retail buildings when, in 1971, he commissioned sculptor Beverly Pepper for a work for NorthPark Center, a mall complex he built in Dallas.

The Nashers also collected pieces by minimalist and pop artists such as Donald Judd, Andy Warhol, Claes Oldenberg and Roy Lichtenstein, as well as by masters Giacometti, Rodin and Picasso.

Eventually Nasher spent $70 million of his fortune to build a 55,000-square-foot museum and sculpture garden, the Nasher Sculpture Center, in downtown Dallas, adjacent to the Dallas Museum of Art. The center opened in 2003.

Nasher died Friday. His wife died of cancer in 1988.