Peter Ohler Sr. in front of Masters Gallery's former location in Calgary around 1980. (courtesy Masters Gallery)
Former Calgary and Vancouver art dealer Peter Ohler Sr. died June 7.
Ohler, who opened Masters Gallery in Calgary in 1976, "laid the foundation for generations of art collectors in the city and across the country," said the gallery's current owner, Ryan Green.
"He was among the first dealers of historical Canadian art in Alberta and the first to represent and exhibit local artists like Marion Nicoll, Janet Mitchell and Joane Cardinal-Schubert, artists which, at the time, were not understood by the wider public nor recognized by the market."
Ohler played five seasons with the BC Lions of the Canadian Football League, and was also a member of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.
But his true passion was art. He opened his first gallery in the 1960s in Vancouver with a small collection of Emily Carr and Group of Seven paintings.
After his time in Calgary, Ohler returned to Vancouver in 1986, driven in part by his search for answers for the disabling headaches that stemmed largely from injuries he sustained in his football career. He opened a small gallery in Kerrisdale.
"People would often drop in just to share time with the man who seemingly always had it for those who needed it," says his obituary. "He also returned to his football roots, coaching the Vancouver College Fighting Irish in the '90s, the Richmond Raiders, and the UBC Thunderbirds. Peter loved to see people succeed, which he measured by people’s own sense of pride in the dreams they sought for themselves."
Ohler is survived by his wife, Bev; daughter Emily; and sons John, Paul and Peter Ohler Jr.
Source: Masters Gallery, Wikipedia, Dignity Memorial