Lloyd Raymond "Bill" Ney (March 8, 1893 – May 10, 1965) was an American painter and sculptor known for his textural, non-objective work.[1] During the New Deal, his New London Facets for New London, Ohio was the only abstract art mural commissioned by the Treasury Department for a U.S. Post Office.[2] He exhibited at the Guggenheim during his lifetime,[3] and some of his paintings are in that museum's permanent collection.[4]
Born in Pennsylvania to William W. and Sadie (Maidensford) Ney,[1] when Ney was young his father worked as a postal clerk.[5] On his World War I draft registration card, Ney listed his occupation as "Inspector of Shells."[6] He served in the U.S. Army from July 1917 to July 1919, apparently as a private at a base hospital.[7] He taught at the Kansas City Art Institute.[4] After some time studying art in Paris, Ney eventually settled in New Hope, Pennsylvania, which ultimately became known for its colony of modern artists.[1] Ney died in Pennsylvania in 1965.[8] Some of his paintings were included in the New Hope Modernists 1917–1950 exhibit at the James A. Michener Museum in Doylestown, Pennsylvania in 1991.[9]