Leah Joy Hoffman crowned 2026 Beaux Arts queen in Jacksonville

Leah Joy Hoffman was crowned the 2026 Beaux Arts queen in Jacksonville, giving the Art Association of Jacksonville a new face for a fundraiser that has anchored the city’s arts calendar for 69 years. The coronation capped an evening built around the city’s art community, with a champagne reception at the David Strawn Art Gallery, the crowning at Rammelkamp Chapel and dancing later at Hamilton’s 110 Northeast Ballroom.

The 69th annual Beaux Arts Ball carried the theme Liberty in Bloom, a nod to America’s 250th birthday commemorations, and the association said the event remained its major fundraiser each April. Before guests even arrived, the ball’s fundraising page had already topped $21,000, showing $21,105 raised from 181 supporters. That money helps sustain the association’s work, including the David Strawn Art Gallery and the programming tied to it.

The event is more than a pageant. The association says the ball brings together members, volunteers, families and local supporters in a three-part night that starts at the gallery, moves to the chapel for coronation, then ends with hors d’oeuvres, entertainment by Spectrum Band and dancing. The setup has made the Beaux Arts Ball one of Jacksonville’s most recognizable civic traditions, part fundraiser and part social marker.

The Art Association of Jacksonville ties that tradition to a long history in the city. The organization says it has owned and maintained the David Strawn Art Gallery since 1915, when Dr. David Strawn deeded the home to the association for use as an art gallery. Its history pages also say the association was chartered in 1875 and formed in 1873, underscoring how deeply the group is woven into Jacksonville life.

Hoffman’s coronation also fits a pattern that gives the Beaux Arts Ball its staying power. In 2025, Amelia Ann Symons was named queen and Braden Robert Cors king, and Symons had already taken part in three previous Beaux Arts Balls before her coronation. Earlier coverage has shown the same family connections running through the event for decades, including one queen whose parents had supported the ball since 1986 and were life members of the Art Association.

For Jacksonville, the Beaux Arts Ball is a snapshot of how the city’s arts scene survives: through volunteers, family ties and a yearly ritual that keeps attention on the gallery, the association and the people who keep both going.