Art gallery roof collapses just hours after reception
BY ABE WINTER
WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER

About 150 people attended Saturday night's showing of about 100 pieces of art at Jackson Artworks.

Fortunately, they had left the opening-night reception hours before the collapse of the roof at 1108 Jackson St. in the Old Market of downtown Omaha.

"It was like a mini-tsunami in here," gallery director Marcia Manzo said as she provided a quick tour while workers removed debris Sunday evening.

Manzo and owners Jim and Kat Moser, who live next door in one of the two side-by-side buildings they own, were the hosts of the reception from 6 to 9 p.m. Saturday. The roof may have been struck by lightning and, weakened by the weight of the water from Omaha's record rainfall Saturday, collapsed between midnight and 2 a.m.

"It could have been devastating if it had happened last night," said Manzo, who received a phone call informing her of the collapse.

Nobody was in the building after 10:30 p.m. Saturday. None of the pieces in the show were damaged. However, damage totaling thousands of dollars was done to other pieces, including many that were being held for buyers.

"We were blessed," Manzo said, referring to the fact that there were no injuries and the 100 pieces that were shown were intact. "But we also sold a lot of art last night."

Unfortunately, the studio and artwork of Omaha artist/sculptor Dan Newberry were destroyed. Some books in his studio ended up more than 35 feet away in the building's kitchen.

Paintings in a front storage room were destroyed; others were damaged by the humidity in the aftermath.

Other artwork hadn't been accounted for, and some works in storage weren't reachable because of their proximity to the collapsed roof. The building's office, including its computer, was destroyed, as were the contents in another room rented by an Omaha musician.

"He was pouring water out of guitars," Manzo said.

Workers estimated the hole in the roof to be 22 feet by 20 feet.

Despite the mess, there's a possibility of reopening soon.

"We're hoping for a reopening of this show, with any luck, this weekend," Manzo said.

Meanwhile, there is no way of estimating the damage.

"We're not anywhere near that yet," Manzo said.





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