Barry Conger, Denny Kellogg, Joe Abbrescia Jr. and Ron Holcomb install Glacier Park mural at O'Shaughnessy Center in Whitefish.
A key part of the mission of the Hockaday Museum in Kalispell is to preserve the artistic legacy of Glacier National Park. As part of its ongoing efforts to restore 15 murals originally painted to decorate the walls of Glacier National Park lodges, the fifth and sixth murals have been installed at the O’Shaughnessy Center in Whitefish.
The murals were rescued by Leona and Robert Brown of West Glacier after being cut from their frames and discarded during lodge restoration in the mid-1950s. The unsigned, untitled murals that will be on display at the O’Shaughnessy include a 4’ x 7.5’ piece that features a familiar Lake McDonald scene and a larger 4’ x 9’ work showcasing glaciers from the high country. Both of the works were specified “Dining Room” on the backs as their original location, with no mention of the lodge in which they were originally displayed.
Restoration for the fifth and sixth murals was made possible by a grant from the BNSF Foundation, and was completed through the generosity of Hockaday donors and professional art conservationist Joe Abbrescia, Jr.
Since the Browns’ granddaughter Leanne and her husband Alan Goldhahn donated the murals to the Hockaday in 2012, it has been the goal of the museum to have the murals restored and then displayed in public places so that all Glacier National Park aficionados may enjoy them. The first four murals are installed at the Hockaday Museum of Art, with the smallest being four feet in length and the largest reaching spanning 11 feet.
Those wishing to contribute to the continued restoration effort may contact the Hockaday’s interim executive director Barry Conger at 406-755-5268.