This is an image on a bronze statue of Robert W. Woodruff designed by Nobuhito M. Matoba. The statue symbolizes Woodruff’s contributions to the Art Alliance, renamed Woodruff Arts Center. The statue stands in front of the Symphony Building and alongside a sculpture designed for the Olympics. The center commemorates a man who seemed to care a lot about how his actions influences his community in terms of architecture and community service.
This is an image on the entrance of the High Museum of Art/ Woodruff Arts Center located in Midtown. The architecture of the center is modern and geometric. This design on the center can be intimidating because it appears to cater to the middle and upper class despite being easily accessible on public transit.
Atlanta Symphony Hall, Woodruff Arts Center
This is an image of a stone featured with a statue of Robert Woodruff. The inscription states Robert Woodruff’s purpose for creating the Arts Center was he recognized the arts are essential to community life. The stone also provides information about Woodruff’s credentials as a renowned industrialist and civic leader. This information provokes me to research what Woodruff has specifically done to improve his community in terms of industry and civics.
Bench at High Museum
At the Woodruff Arts Center/High Museum of Art, the architecture appears to be inviting of its surrounding community (big open windows, bright friendly colors), however there are also features that seem to be a method of exclusion. For instance, as shown in the image above the benches at the center have bars that would prevent the homeless from sleeping, an example of discrimination featured in Schindler’s article Architectural Exclusion: Discrimination and Segregation Through Physical Design of the Built Environment. In addition to barred benches, the center also has locks on trashcans designed to exclude the homeless.
Source: Curtis Compton, ccompton@ajc.com, The Atlanta Journal