Aldridge Gardens in Hoover is opening its walls to three decades of work by Birmingham-area artist Tom Dameron, with 51 pieces going on display Thursday and remaining up through Jan. 4. The collection spans watercolors, acrylics, etchings and portraits, pulling together subjects as varied as garden flowers and familiar faces from Birmingham's music scene.
The exhibition, which runs from Thursday, Nov. 5, through Jan. 4, was detailed by Hoover Sun, which reported the show features detailed watercolors and acrylics depicting flowers, gardens and other natural subjects, along with etchings and portraits. A free opening reception is scheduled for Thursday, Nov. 12, from 5 to 7 p.m., with no cost to attend either the reception or the exhibition itself.
Flowers, Monet and a Nod to Giverny
Much of Dameron's botanical work leans on familiar garden favorites — sunflowers, hydrangeas, lilies and roses all appear among the pieces. But a portion of the collection draws from further afield: his water lilies were inspired by Claude Monet's garden and pond at Giverny, France, according to the Hoover Sun's reporting.
That blend of local subject matter and classic art-history influence fits a pattern in Dameron's recent exhibition history. In November and December 2012, the Library at the Birmingham Botanical Gardens hosted a show pairing his work with that of fellow local artist Maud Coirier-Belser, featuring pieces depicting natural outdoor settings, as reported by Village Living.
Portraits of Birmingham's Music and Food Scenes
Beyond the gardens and flora, the Aldridge exhibit turns its focus to people who have shaped Birmingham's cultural landscape. The show includes portraits of musicians Bobby Horton, Topper Price and Herb Trotman, along with an acrylic portrait of the late Leon Redbone, per the Hoover Sun's account. Dameron also portrayed the late sculptor Frank Fleming and Benard Tamburello, owner of Vecchia Pizzeria & Mercato.
Dameron's connection to the Birmingham arts and music world runs deep. A 2018 Aldridge Gardens event listing described him as a local artist and musician, noting his role as a sousaphone player with The Legendary Pineapple Skinners jazz band and The Old Fashioned Rhythm Method, according to Aldridge Gardens' own calendar entry from that era, which marked an earlier artist reception at the Gardens.
A Pharmacist's Spare-Time Pursuit
What makes the body of work notable is when Dameron made most of it: in his spare time. He worked as a hospital pharmacist for more than 50 years while pursuing art and music on the side, the Hoover Sun reports. He is largely self-taught as both an artist and a musician, and he played trombone in high school and later with a U.S. Army Reserve band.
Dameron also had a local show in 2024. A month-long exhibition of roughly 20 of his pieces appeared at the Homewood Public Library in October, opening Oct. 1 and running the full month, according to the Over the Mountain Journal. The Aldridge Gardens show, with more than double that number of works, represents a considerably larger retrospective look at his output.
Visiting the Exhibition
Aldridge Gardens is located at 3530 Lorna Road in Hoover. The Hoover Sun reported the Gardens are open daily from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and the Gallery from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., though a separate Aldridge Gardens page for a past exhibition listed the gallery as normally open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. — a discrepancy worth noting for anyone planning a visit. Aldridge Gardens has hosted other rotating art shows in the past year, including a collection by Alabama artist Donna Clayton that remained on display through May 1.
