I was thrilled when President Clinton chose my painting “Bill and Elvis” to become part of the permanent collection at his Presidential library in Little Rock, Arkansas in 2003. The painting was on display in the rotunda at the capital building in Little Rock as the library was finishing construction but I was unable to attend that event. So when I was informed that my painting would be part of a special show about Elvis at the Clinton Library this past summer, I made my plans to head to Little Rock. I arrived in Little Rock on the afternoon of September lst.
My trip south was very nostalgic for me since I lived in El Dorado, Arkansas from age 4 to age 8 when my father worked for Lion Oil. We would visit Little Rock as our closest big city and memories came back to me as I walked the streets.
The library is an imposing building right on the river in downtown Little Rock. It is all glass so the light and sense of space in the building is wonderful. The permanent exhibits are user friendly and as you walk through them you can follow both Bill and Hillary Clinton from their childhood days right up to the present.
The Elvis exhibit ran from June to September 11, 2011 and contained items of Elvis’s clothing, photos, jewelry, movie posters and even a sports car that he drove in one of his movies. It also had a section featuring Elvis related artwork which was where my painting was shown.
