The Balladeer Turns 40

The Gift from "Friends of the Balladeer"

At the surprise reception for Dolan Ellis on February 12th, 2006, one of the big ceremonial events was the unveiling of a beautiful gift, presented by a group calling themselves "Friends of the Balladeer," in appreciation of his 40 years as Arizona's Official State Balladeer

.The gift is a10 foot tall 3-dimensional fiberglass guitar titled "Desert Rhythms" pained by acclaimed metal artist Mary Chuduk with sponsorship by Forever Resorts, LLC, for the 2006 Guitarmania auction benefitting Big Brother Big Sisters of Central Arizona.

Immediately following the unveiling, each person assembled there was given a "Takeaway" art card.  Images of each side of the card are shown below.  Click on an image to see a larger version.