Grant to Aid Revival of Barnsdall Park

Los Angeles art collector and benefactor Frederik R. Weisman announced Thursday that he will donate $100,000 to the city for the construction of a sculpture garden to help revive historic Barnsdall Park and its cultural center in Hollywood.

The grant by the Frederik R. Weisman Arts Foundation was announced at the first meeting of a 26-member board appointed by Mayor Tom Bradley to attempt to end years of neglect that have led to the park’s decay and the deterioration of Barnsdall’s landmark building--the Hollyhock House--designed by architect Frank Lloyd Wright.

Weisman, widely regarded as one of the country’s leading collectors of 20th-Century art, said that he made the donation because “I’ve lived in Los Angeles since I was a boy, and I want people around the world to know about the truly wonderful cultural things going on here.”

The sculpture garden, Weisman said, will be devoted to promoting the works of Los Angeles artists, who would donate their works to the park on a long-term lease basis.

Adolfo Nodal, head of the city’s Department of Cultural Affairs, said the donation is a “great boon” because the sculptures will link the Hollyhock House with the park’s art gallery, theater and two art schools.

Bradley spokesman Bill Chandler said the mayor was “delighted . . . and hopeful that art lovers in the city will come forward with similar donations.”