Joan Crystal, whose Louisiana Gallery spotlighted international art, died Saturday from cardiac arrest. She was 91.

Born in Pittsburgh in 1925, she came to Houston with her family in the late 1930s. Following graduation from Lamar High School, Crystal earned a bachelor's degree from Southern Methodist University, then a master's degree in English at Rice University.

In 1962, Crystal and her long-time partner, architect Adrian Rosenberg, transformed an old house on Louisiana into a fine-art gallery and named it for its location. It complemented the city's small roster of galleries at the time, among them those of colleagues Ben Dubose, Dianne David and Meredith Long and Kathryn Swenson. Crystal's ecumenical eye made her gallery a showcase for a broad spectrum of fine art by leading American and European artists. It introduced William Copley's playful art to this part of the country in 1965 and over the years presented easel work and drawings by contemporary Mexican masters, exhibited work by young Texas Jack Boynton, Ben Woitena and Earl Staley, brought Colonial furniture and African and pre-Columbian objects into the mix until import of the latter was banned.

Construction of the Southwest Freeway forced Louisiana Gallery to move. It settled on Kipling but kept its name and approach into the 1980s.

"Joan had great flair," said Houston gallery owner Betty Moody, who worked for Dubose in the 1960s. "They would go into his office and talk about art, about pre-Columbian culture. She was like a personage in a novel and led a fascinating life."

"Joan was a wonderful woman, one of a kind," artist Staley said. "She and Adrian showed remarkable stuff, sold a lot of big-name artists who passed through the Museum of Fine Arts and the Menil. I remember African pieces and sculpture by Alberto Chillida and Copleys on the wall and Alexander Calder gouaches that you could buy for $300!" (An exhibit of Copley's work is currently highlighted by the Menil Collection).

After closing the gallery, Crystal remained active in collecting and selling art, occasionally hosting exhibitions and parties, legendary for their glamour, in her River Oaks home.

"She was one of my favorite people," restaurateur Bill Sadler said, "a great hostess and good friend."

Crystal is survived by her daughter, Caroline Crystal, and her daughter's husband, William T. Wilkins, of Houston; and brother, Goodman Caplan of Houston; and grandchildren. Funeral arrangements are pending at Levy Funeral Home.