William Ohly
Illustration — 89 Park Road, New Barnet, former home of Ohly. William Ohly (31 August 1883 – 22 July 1955) was a British ethnographic art collector and gallery owner, whose Berkeley Galleries and Abbey Art Centre and Museum were important features of the mid-20th century London art scene.
Also recorded as William Ferdinand Carl Ohly · William F. C. Ohly · W. Ohly
William Ohly
Sciarinen 17:42, 3 July 2007 (UTC) · Self-photographed · CC BY-SA 3.0
- Born
- 1883 · Kingston upon Hull.
- Occupation
- anthropologist · sculptor · art dealer · art collector · gallerist
- Education
- Städelschule
- Languages
- German
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Illustration — 89 Park Road, New Barnet, former home of Ohly. William Ohly (31 August 1883 – 22 July 1955) was a British ethnographic art collector and gallery owner, whose Berkeley Galleries and Abbey Art Centre and Museum were important features of the mid-20th century London art scene.
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wikidata · Q15998725 · wikipedia · William Ohly
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Life
Life
Ohly was born in 1883 in Kingston upon Hull before moving with his family to Frankfurt am Main when he was 14. Raised in Germany, Ohly attended the Städelschule and was subsequently apprenticed to the German sculptor Hugo Lederer in Berlin. Together with one of his brothers, Ohly worked in Germany until 1914 creating fountains and memorials. He briefly married and had a son, but the couple soon separated. Ohly returned to Britain before World War I, but after the conflict went back to Germany again, eventually leaving in 1934 after the Nazis took power. He settled in New Barnet and purchased a large house and grounds from the religious sect, 'The Confraternity of the Kingdom of Christ', founded by J.S.M.Ward, converting them into a museum, gallery and artist commune, the Abbey Arts Centre, whose curator was Cottie Arthur Burland from 1950. He also owned a commercial gallery, the Berkeley Galleries in Davies Street, where he held numerous art and ethnography exhibitions. Ohly died in 1955, but the gallery remained open until 1977 under his son Ernest.
Gänsereiterbrunnen in Essen-Frohnhausen
Wiki05
Gänsereiterbrunnen in Essen-Frohnhausen, unter Denkmalschutz
Wiki05
Life and career
Dated record
Life and career
The full dated record · 2 entries
1883
William Ohly born at Kingston upon Hull.
1955
William Ohly died on 22 July 1955.
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Kingston upon Hull.
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London.
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reference work
- “William Ohly”, English Wikipedia, consulted as further reading
Reputable secondary · Wikipedia
authority record
- Wikidata, structured authority record Q15998725: William Ohly
General reference · Wikidata
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The authorities additionally record the headings William Ferdinand Carl Ohly, William F.
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 17 August 2026.
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