Hillside Auditorium to Be Dedicated 'Artistically'

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Hillside Auditorium, the newest academic building on the University of Arkansas campus, will be formally dedicated Wednesday, March 27, in a ceremony that will include the installation of four new pieces of artwork by three nationally known artists. The dedication will be held in the second floor lobby of the Hillside Auditorium at 5:30 p.m.

Artist Leonardo Drew will be the keynote speaker at the dedication with additional remarks from Chancellor G. David Gearhart, Provost Sharon Gaber and Cynthia Nourse Thompson, assistant art professor. Drew’s Number 23S (2012), a 64-square-foot, three-dimensional work composed of wood and mixed media, is one of several works of art on display in the new auditorium.

The $14.6 million Hillside Auditorium has one 487-seat auditorium and a 290-seat auditorium and has been used for lectures since the start of the spring semester. The building also features a three-tiered green roof, landscaped with plants and trees, and an outdoor event pavilion.

In addition to speaking at the dedication ceremony, Drew will present a lecture at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 26, in the Stella Boyle Smith Concert Hall in the Fine Arts Center.