Description
Richard Yarde's Savoy is one of six indoor murals that were commissioned by the General Services Administration’s Art-in-Architecture Program for the Joseph P. Addabbo Federal Building in Jamaica, New York. This piece depicts African American dancers at the Savoy, a block-long ballroom in Harlem that flourished between 1926 and 1959. One of the dancers shown in this piece is Frank Manning, a major choreographer for the professional dancers and one of the many Savoy dancers who moved to the borough of Queens in the 1940s. Savoy commemorates the importance of improvisation and inventive dancing in the African American community. The completed mural was installed in 1989 and measures 10 feet by 12 feet."It is my hope that the mural will serve to help all people remember the important contribution that Afro-American people have made to dance in this country." Richard Yarde, dedication brochure, 1989
Physical Object
Wood And Mixed Media
Smithsonian American Art Museum, Transfer from the General Services Administration, Art-in-Architecture Program
