Old Jail Art Center
Exterior of the Old Jail Art Center | |
| Established | 1980 |
|---|---|
| Location | Albany, Texas, United States |
| Coordinates | 32°43′23″N 99°17′41″W / 32.72306°N 99.29472°W |
| Type | Art museum Local history museum |
| Accreditation | American Alliance of Museums |
| Visitors | 12,000 (2019) |
| Founder | Reilly Nail Bill Bomar |
| Employees | 7 (full time) |
| Website | theojac |
Old Jail Art Center | |
| Built | 1878 |
| Architect | John Thomas Arthur Weinman |
| Architectural style | Late Victorian |
| Part of | Shackelford County Courthouse Historic District (ID76002065) |
| Significant dates | |
| Designated CP | July 30, 1976 |
| Designated RTHL | 1962 |
The Old Jail Art Center (OJAC) is an art and regional history museum in Albany, Texas. It is housed in a former jail that was completed in 1878. After being replaced by a new jail in 1929, the old jail building was saved from demolition by local author and playwright Robert E. Nail Jr. in 1940. In 1980, the OJAC was established in the building by his nephew, local author and former television producer Reilly Nail, and Reilly's cousin, artist Bill Bomar.
The OJAC's permanent collection includes over 2,200 drawings, paintings, prints, and sculptures. Its collection strengths include modern British art, the Fort Worth Circle, the Taos Moderns, Asian art, pre-Columbian art, and the contemporary art of Texas. The OJAC also actively preserves regional history and is home to the Green Art Research Library, the Robert E. Nail Jr. Archives, and an oral history project.