Brown Palace 125th Anniversary Painting

Commemorating the 125th anniversary of the Brown Palace, “A Present from the Past” depicts Denver's landmark hotel, along with elements that reflect changes in its surroundings over more than 12 decades. 

Just as in the Alan True morals that grace the hotel’s elevator lobby, Froula’s painting depicts changes in transportation through the decades. A horse-drawn carriage evolves to a trolley car and motorcars, a Stanley Steamer presages elegant touring cars. The 1930s Packard near the corner belonged to Henry Brown’s grand-daughter. The four British lads on the Ship Tavern corner rocked the conservative hotel when they visited in 1964. Their suite was on the eighth floor, directly above them. The finned Cadillac rounding the corner indicates the 20th Century’s midpoint, and the Tesla and pedi-cab bring the scene into the present. 

Written by Brown Palace Historian Debra Faulkner