The Franz Bader Gallery was an art gallery and bookshop in Washington D.C. operated by Franz Bader (1903-1994) under various names including Franz Bader Gallery, Franz Bader Inc., and Franz Bader Gallery and Bookshop. In 1953, Bader established the gallery at 1705 G Street Northwest, where he showed local and/or upcoming artists, as well as contemporary prints. The gallery moved in September 1964 to 2124 Pennsylvania Avenue and in October 1979 to 2001 I Street, where Bader remained until his retirement in 1985. The gallery continued on after his retirement, and moved location to 1701 Pennsylvania Avenue in 1987, and to 1500 K Street in 1990. The final show held by the gallery was in 1995. Among the artists represented by the gallery and included in this collection are Alice Acheson, Anita Bucherer, Frank Bunts, Bernice Cross, Harry Irving Gates, Peter Milton, Michael Platt, Alma Thomas, Leonard Maurer, and others.
Franz Bader was born in Vienna, Austria in 1903. By 1937, Vienna had succumbed to Nazi occupation, and in 1939 Bader and his wife Virginia fled, moving to America where he found employment at the Whyte Bookshop and Gallery in Washington D.C. He was inspired to create a gallery different than those typically found in the conservative atmosphere of Washington D.C., and he made it his mission to represent contemporary artists living and working in the city. His work with modern art set him apart, eventually earning him the moniker of "Dean of the Washington Gallery Dealers". He passed away in 1994.