Rolland Collection

SCULPTURES FORM FOUNDATION OF CALIFORNIAN’S QUEST FOR THE ‘BEST OF THE BEST’

William Rolland readily admits to humble beginnings. “I was born in Los Angeles, raised during the Great Depression,” he says. “My bedroom was the kitchen. I lived in that kitchen for 13 years of my life.”

It was those times, he says, that inspired him to achieve success in business, and to value life’s beauty. “I’ve always had an appreciation,” he says, “for what my life did not provide me.”

As his real estate development firm thrived in Southern California in the mid-1950s, Rolland began collecting art. His first significant purchase was a 500-pound bronze sculpture by German artist Hugo Kaufmann. “I started with every penny I could put together to go out and look for art objects that appealed to my eyes.”

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Today, Rolland’s collection includes sculptures, Murano glass, oil and watercolor paintings, winning Indianapolis racing cars, and even a letter penned by Mark Twain. “It’s an eclectic collection,” says Rolland, “but it’s always been the best of the best I could afford beginning at that time… 50, 60 years ago.”

Pieces from the William Rolland collection are being offered in two upcoming Heritage auctions.

“We are honored to work with Mr. Rolland,” says Heritage Auctions consignment director Carolyn Mani. “Rolland has always had a passion for items that are rare or one of a kind. On top of that, his love of the arts and support of various organizations puts him in a class by himself.”

Rolland says much of his passion for the arts “stems from my No. 1 love, architecture.” That love, and a commitment to giving back to the community, led Rolland and wife Kay to build a $10 million football stadium at California Lutheran University in Thousand Oaks. Built alongside the stadium, the William Rolland Gallery of Fine Art houses pieces from Rolland’s collection.

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 “We love our community,” says Kay Rolland. “I give to music scholarships. He gives to sports, the football stadium. We give back because we’ve been so fortunate.”

Now it’s time to share his collection, says William Rolland, 84.

“I hope the people who win my pieces see what I saw through my eyes when I bought them. They were all exceptional, they weren’t ordinary. They had details and detail in bronze is what I always looked for. The face, eyes, fingers, toes … they are all delineated instead of just blending together.”

In the end, Rolland advises collectors to acquire pieces the way he’s always acquired items.

“Don’t just buy to buy,” he says. “Buy for a purpose. And let that purpose be the experiences you’ve had in your life, where your education has taken you, and stick to it.”

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