Leroy Lamis (American, 1925-2010) "Orange and Red"

Provenance Note: Frederic P. "Nick" Norton (1935-2025) was a respected Western New York attorney, civic leader, and devoted arts patron whose lifelong commitment to culture enriched the Buffalo region. A Dartmouth College graduate (Class of 1957) and Yale Law School alumnus, Norton practiced law locally for five decades at Norton, Radin, Hoover, Freedman, serving corporations, municipalities, and families. He was deeply engaged in civic and cultural life, holding leadership and board roles with the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra and the Albright-Knox Art Gallery, among others. Since 1961, Norton served Rotary in numerous leadership roles including president, board member, and district governor, and is a Paul Harris Fellow with four sapphires, a benefactor, and a recipient of the Rotary Foundation’s Citation for Meritorious Service.
A dedicated arts patron inspired by his father, he began collecting in 1956 with his passions supported and complimented by his wife, Alexandra Barnes "Alex" Norton, through the years. A passionate and disciplined collector for more than fifty years, Norton assembled an extensive collection of prints, drawings, paintings, and sculpture. His connoisseurship was guided by intellectual curiosity and a commitment to supporting artists and institutions. Between 1998 and 2000, he gifted more than 500 prints to the Albright-Knox Art Gallery, underscoring his belief in public access to art. They dedicated the F. Paul Norton and Frederic P. Norton Family Prints and Drawings Study Center in 1999. Works remaining from the Norton estate reflect decades of informed acquisition and cultural stewardship, offering collectors a view into a thoughtful engagement with modern and contemporary art.

Leroy Lamis (American, 1925-2010)
Leroy Lamis was an American sculptor known for Constructivist and kinetic works, often composed of shimmering Plexiglass cubes and precise geometric forms. Born in Eddyville, Iowa, he studied at New Mexico Highlands University and Columbia University, drawing inspiration from the writings of Naum Gabo and Richard Lippold, whose ideas about material and spatial tension shaped his practice. Influenced early on by machines, automobiles, and the visual dynamics of film while working at MGM Studios, Lamis developed a body of work that explored light, space, structure, and later digital processes.