“It is so important to love someone a little extra on their bad days.” ~ Unknown
I was on my way to see Mom at the hospital when I was stopped at the red light at Bolivar and S. Broadway. That’s when I saw it. Letha Drury’s Facebook post recently alerted me to the demise of this old, beautiful building on the corner. When I met Mike and Letha Drury, their South Hill Gallery was in this building. I met Mike before they were married, but they might have been dating by then. This was way back in the mid-1990s. I was an undergraduate in UK’s Fine Arts program in the nearby Reynold’s Building. When it came time for me to begin showing work, I heard about Mike through student channels and that he treated art students with incredible kindness and supply discounts, a much-needed service for poor art students. Long story short, I could not have pulled off a professional-looking senior show and many others since then if it hadn’t been for Mike and Letha’s generosity over the many years since that first meeting in the small back room of that precious old building. I came to value their help, keen design sensibilities, and friendships. I hold fond memories of the building, too, and was sad to see it reduced to rubble. What passes for progress is a sad state of affairs in America, where we hold little value for craftsmanship and timeless architectural treasures. I was sadder still to see Mike holding a brick from that building. Nevertheless, things are as they should be, and I am grateful beyond measure for Mike and Letha and the connections we made in that building.
Leave a Reply