Deep Ellum Community Center
Three new exhibitions
Details
Permanent and Temporary Exhibitions
Opened September 30, 2023, 2528 Elm Street, Suite A, Dallas
About
The Deep Ellum Foundation, Deep Ellum Community Association, and Documentary Arts invite you to the Deep Ellum Community Center, including three new exhibitions: When You Go Down in Deep Ellum, Unlikely Blues, and Invisible Deep Ellum.
The opening event on September 30, 2023 • 5-8pm • 2528 Elm Street, Suite A
featured performances by Akin Babatundé and The Light Crust Doughboys.
Permanent Exhibition:
When You Go Down in Deep Ellum brings to life the history of Deep Ellum through themes that span 150 years – Migration, Music, Business and Commerce, and Art and Culture – and highlights Deep Ellum’s vast musical legacy with a listening room and operational 78 rpm recording studio – the first of its kind in the nation.
Curated by Alan Govenar with assistance from Jason Johnson-Spinos, Kip Lornell, Phillip Collins, Jay Brakefield, Jessica Schneider Adams, Norma Adams-Wade, Katy Parker, and Paula Bosse. Architectural/Design consultant: Cliff Welch. Lighting consultants: Steve Woods and Mandy Stockhausen. Funded by the Texas Commission on the Arts through the Cultural Districts grant program, the Summerlee Foundation, Ace Records (London), and the Deep Ellum Foundation.
Inaugural Temporary Exhibition:
Unlikely Blues presents the illustrations of Chicago artist Louis Paeth, who designed “race record” ads that were made to promote early blues artists, most notably Blind Lemon Jefferson.
Organized by Alan Govenar with assistance from Peter Paeth, Kip Lornell, Jason Johnson-Spinos, Bob Ray Sanders, Monique Y. Wells, and Katy Parker. Funded in part by the Summerlee Foundation.
Outdoor Installation:
Utilizing the concrete columns under Central Expressway and the I-345 overpass, Invisible Deep Ellum features advertisements and selected pages from 1911 and 1925 Black business directories that document the vitality of Deep Ellum, interspersed with comments by community leaders.
Invisible Deep Ellum is a public art installation by Alan Govenar with assistance from Bob Ray Sanders, Norma Adams-Wade, Harrison Blair, Phillip Collins, and Jason Johnson-Spinos. Funded in part by the Summerlee Foundation.
Deep Ellum History Tours:
Weekly tours every Saturday give attendees a glimpse into Deep Ellum’s history and provide behind the scenes access to architectural gems.
Beginning September 30. Tours by Jay Brakefield, coauthor with Alan Govenar of Deep Ellum and Central Track: Where Cultures Converged.
