Historic Dreamland Ballroom to Host Art Exhibition

On May 4, 2017 the Friends of Dreamland Ballroom are hosting an art exhibit at the Dreamland Ballroom. The paintings, by Arkansas artist Edwin Cook Brewer, were donated to the Dreamland Ballroom by his daughter Audrey Brewer Wood and her husband Don Wood.

The art series was inspired by a Santa Barbara, Calif., jazz club which Brewer said gave him the desire to completely reinvent his artistic style. Brewer learned to use new media and techniques as he painted these vibrant portraits of jazz artists.

The paintings had been on display at the jazz club which inspired them. After its closure, Brewer's relatives, daughter Audrey and son-in-law Don Wood, sought a new place for the series of jazz paintings to inspire others.

Since the Dreamland Ballroom was a favored venue on the Chitlin' Circuit where musicians such as Duke Ellington, BB King, Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, Louis Armstrong, Cab Calloway, Ray Charles and many others performed made the eight paintings depicting jazz performers a good fit for the historic site.

In the future, the artwork will become a permanent collection when the historic Taborian Hall's Dreamland Ballroom located at 800 West 9th Street in downtown Little Rock is renovated. The Edwin Brewer Art Show premier is free and open to the public. There will be a donation box on site and a Go-Fund-Me account has been activated to help the Friends of Dreamland raise funds to frame and protect these works of art.

The exhibit will be accessed from the State Street side of the building on May 4 from 5:30-7:30 P.M. Please note that the Dreamland Ballroom resides on the third floor and is only accessible via stairs. The Friends of Dreamland are also raising funds to make the Dreamland Ballroom handicap accessible via an elevator. All donations are tax deductible.

Friends of Dreamland is a 501(c)(3) non-profit group committed to bringing back the music, the history, and the party of the Dreamland Ballroom. The Taborian Hall which houses Dreamland Ballroom, was placed on the National Register of Historic Places by the United States Department of the Interior and the Arkansas Historic Preservation Society. For more information on this or other Dreamland Ballroom events, contact matt(at)flagandbanner(dot)com or call 501-255-5700. The Dreamland Ballroom is on the third floor of the Arkansas' FlagandBanner.com building.