ATLANTA - Seventeen prints by Gustave Leheutre, a French painter and printmaker, were recently donated to the Oglethorpe University Museum of Art’s permanent collection. The museum now holds the largest public collection of Leheutre’s prints in the United States. The donations were all from the private collection of Dr. Isaac Melamed of Atlanta.

Leheutre’s (1861-1932) first prints were made in 1893 and most depict landscapes or cityscapes. During his life he produced 160 etchings, seven drypoints and three lithographs. He was most profoundly influenced by James MacNeill Whistler.

Melamed donated the portfolio of prints, a Catalogue Raisonné of Leheutre’s prints written by Loys Delteil and two lithographs also by French artists to the university museum. “The quality and the size of this gift is of enormous cultural importance,” said museum director Lloyd Nick.

Another gift by Melamed was the color lithograph Les Oiseaux (Birds) by Georges Braque (1882-1963). In the early 20th century Braque along with Pablo Picasso invented cubism. After serving in World War I Braque was commissioned to paint the ceiling of the Henri II Renaissance room of the Louvre. Les Oiseaux was made from the sketches for this ceiling.

Melamed also donated Environs de Treil (Triel Neighborhoods) by Maurice de Vlaminck (1876-1958) to the Oglethorpe University Museum of Art. Vlaminck took part in the creation of the Fauve Art movement with Henri Matisse in the early 20th century using pure, vibrant colors.

The gifts will be catalogued and added to the current exhibition, Focus on Realism: The Permanent Collection, on display through December 18. The Oglethorpe University Museum of Art is open Tuesdays through Sundays from noon until 5:00 p.m. Admission is $5 per person, free to members and the Oglethorpe community. The museum is located on the Philip Weltner Library’s third floor. Ample free parking is located behind the library. For more information, call 404.364.8555 or visit the museum's website.