As suggested by Carleton Varney, personal decorator of the Carter Presidential yacht Sequoia, and interior designer for other Carter White House projects, I have recently donated a large piece for the Carter Center annual auction. It is a great honor to be included in this designer package auction item, which can be viewed at www.cartercenter.org.

Also included is an autographed copy of Carleton's book, "In the Pink", a comprehensive overview of the life and work of Dorothy Draper, who is credited with establishing interior design as a profession in the United States. My two "Dorothy Draper Rose" pieces are traveling with the Dorothy Draper Museum Exhibit, currently at the Women's Museum in Dallas, Texas (www.womensmuseum.org), previously at the Museum of the City of New York in 2006.

About "Magnolia at Dusk"

This image was created by photographing from the top of a teetering 6-foot ladder as the light of day waned with each passing second. Fortunately, I survived the self-inflicted precarious situation and was able to complete the piece. A native tree to Kentucky, sometimes called a banana magnolia (possibly because of its leaf structure and elongated petals) its magnificent blooms can reach a foot in length, typically lasting for days, but peaking, as captured here, only for one.

More about The Dorothy Draper Rose

These images were photographed in the rose garden just outside the Museum of the City of New York - another Carleton request I was happy to oblige. As my supporting wife Cheryll shook the morning raindrops from select blooms, I dutifully photographed the lush specimens, named for Dorothy Draper and brought out of the archives of Jackson and Perkins at Carleton's request. A Draper-designed floral pattern fabric used on white wicker chairs in the pavilion adjoining the rose garden and photographed the same day, has been incorporated into the composition.

The Dorothy Draper Rose I	The Dorothy Draper Rose II

One more thing about Dorothy Draper, and perhaps I can be persuaded to shut up - no, probably not. I recently was involved in an exhibit at the Scott County Arts Consortium headquarters in Georgetown, Kentucky, housed in the former jail and currently undergoing a thorough renovation (the track lighting is quite possibly the best I've ever seen, which includes big-city museums). The Mayor-elect and her entourage were in attendance, and we spoke for quite some time about the arts and the nature of my work, which of course brought up Dorothy Draper. As I began explaining who this monumental figure in American interior design was (somewhat the Julia Child or Martha Stewart of her day - which spanned from the Thirties through the Sixties), the Mayor politely interrupted with the comment, "Why, I actually do know who Dorothy Draper is - I wrote a 30-page paper on her in college!". Not only did this lead to further animated discussion, but to an invitation to exhibit work at the Mayor's inaugural reception and later for work to be hung in her new offices. I'm sure Dorothy Draper would be pleased about her far-reaching influence.

Upcoming events in 2007 include an exhibit in the Kentucky State Senate chambers, work at the Kentucky Center in Louisville, Kentucky, and Arts at The Market in conjunction with the Kentucky Arts Council's art marketing program, which I've been fortunate enough to be associated with for the last 3 years. I've also been awarded a solo show scheduled for fall at The Carnegie Visual and Performing Arts Center in Covington, Kentucky and look forward to creating new work for that elegant venue.

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BRUCE ROBERT FRANK
PO Box 1445, Georgetown, KY 40324 • V: 502.535.6787 • F: 502.535.4412
info@brucerobertfrank.com

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