The Atlanta Beltline was an idea originally conceived in 1999 by Georgia Tech student Ryan Gravel. Since then, it has evolved into an artists’ platform, a highly visited tourist spot, and has become an “integrated approach towards transportation (1)” in Atlanta. It currently spans 22 miles and encircles the entirety of the city.
Atlanta’s Beltline bike trail displays and contains many different forms of art. It’s a threshold that many spectators can visit and where many artists can participate and express themselves. From displaying graffiti, to sculptures, to inspirational quotes, the Beltline draws the attention of thousands of individuals daily.
The art along the trail contains a diverse amount of styles and colors and covers a large percentage of the entire area known as the Beltline. The buildings serve as canvases aside from fulfilling their normal purpose of infrastructure. Restaurants, small businesses, and apartment complexes line the trail containing artwork and graffiti as it is highly encouraged as a regular participatory event.
apartment complex on the beltline
Walking further along the trail, one will notice the copious layers of graffiti art. Just about every inch of concrete is covered in graffiti under a specific bridge on the trail. The colors used are bright and vivid, and the art ranges from highly detailed photos to simple lettering, even stick figures.
There are faded quotes, questions, symbols, and labels embedded in the continuous span of art. Some works are personal to human culture and appear to address social and political issues such as legalized recreational use of marijuana and the celebration of the legalization of same-sex marriage. Others serve as personal questions such as “promposals” and even marriage proposals. Some may be considered works of protest, while others are simply names.
“marry me?”
“prom?”
“free gucci”
The opportunity to create art on the Beltline is always open. Upon arriving under the bridge, I witnessed three young men painting graffiti. They used several unique techniques and paint colors, but allowed for some similarity in their works. The process was long and tedious as it took over an hour for them to complete the finishing touches. They created lettered graffiti with blue, red, green, and black spray paint cans. Occasionally, they’d step back around a hundred feet up the slope of the area to check the angles of their works. They finished the entire process just before dark.
graffiti being painted
volcano
The Beltline hosts and showcases the works of many talented artists, anonymous and namely. One of the most popular artists that has been showcased is Alex Brewer, also known as HENSE. This artist has been known to paint vividly colored abstract murals and street art for over two decades. His work was done in 2014, but it is still present at the Beltline today. His mural features many different colors organized in a bubbly-like texture.
me in front of the HENSE mural
Art will continuously be a major key to the success of the Beltline trail. It has been known to consistently bring together communities, artists, musicians, and individuals from all over metro Atlanta.
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