Schools and Universities Archives - nashville public art

Schools and Universities

Lockeland Design Mural

This mural is hard for me to miss, as I only live a block away – though it’s not the closest mural to my house! This is unmistakably the work of Andee Rudloff, along with students of Lockeland Design Center, an elementary school in in Lockeland Springs where the mural is found. You might know Lockeland Design for its strong reputation, or you might know it because it was featured in a Kleenex ad that honored a long-time janitor.

Rudloff is know for her community murals, and she has done several at schools, including two murals not far away at Warner Arts Magnet Elementary.

The Lockeland Design mural sits on the back of a “portable” classroom (it’s been in place for several years) behind the main school building. It’s filled with a number of school-related themes, and from this mural I have finally learned that the school mascot is the Lions. I like how the design makes creative use of the HVAC vents.

The mural also honors the class of 2020. I wondered about that, but because Lockeland Design has recently acquired an Instagram account, I was able to learn that the mural is a legacy product of the 4th grade class of 2020 (LDC is a K-4 school). The design of the mural includes drawings from the Class of 2020, and it went up last November.

I managed to get a picture of the mural just after Rudloff had drawn the outline of the design. This is how she does community murals – she draws the outline, and then invites participants to help her fill it with color. Over on Lockeland Design’s Instagram page, you can find a video of Rudloff drawing the design, as well as photos of students helping to complete the project.

Located at 105 South 17th Street. That’s the address of the school. The mural is found on the back side of the school, and can be seen from the 1700 block of Woodland Street. Remember that this is a school. While the backyard is usually open, limit your visits there to when school is not in session. Street parking is available.

February 25, 2021 0

A Splash of Color

Watkins Figures mural Nashville Street art

For twenty years, these colorful dancing figures have graced the side of the Watkins Park Community Center. They, along with the mosaics and other figures that adorn the entrance, are called “A Splash of Color,” and were done in 2000 by Doug Stevenson, Ronnica Stanley, and Lynn Harroff. I got their names from the Metro-Owned Artwork Conditions Assessment Report (pdf), but otherwise, I’ve been able to learn little about them. It’s likely they were associated with the community center at the time. Since then a tree has grown up that obscures the center figures, but otherwise, as the report states, their condition, and the condition of the mosaics, is quite good. Pretty impressive for painted wood exposed to the weather. And they definitely bring color and life to an otherwise drab building. Some differ, but I believe bringing beauty to public spaces is a good use of Metro dollars, though, in these tough budget times, we probably won’t be getting anything new for a while. Good thing these relics are holding up well.

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These are the mosaics and other figures at the entrance.

Watkins Figures mural mosaic Nashville Street art

Located at 617 17th Avenue North. The figures along the wall face south towards Jo Johnston Avenue, while the entrance is on 17th Avenue. The community center has parking, and street parking is available nearby.

May 4, 2020 0

Warner Elementary, Part 2

Warner Elementary Mural street art Nashville

A few weeks back I wrote about the mural on the low thin wall on the front side of Warner Arts Magnet Elementary done by Andee Rudloff and the Warner students and staff and noted it was one of two. Well, this is the second one! It’s on the backside of the school. As with the first, Rudloff work-shopped with students before developing her design. As is usual with her community murals, Rudloff did a black-and-white outline of all the images, and she and students and staff worked together to fill in the colors. Surreal scenes of students, teachers, games and a fair amount of whimsy make up the mural. Rudloff has been working with other schools around town, so keep an eye out for her signature style at your local schools and community centers.

Located at 628 Russell Street, on the south side of the building, which faces Fatherland Street. The mural faces east. While the mural can be seen from the street, a closer look requires being on school grounds. You should time your visit for the weekends or after school hours. If more than one or two cars are in the parking lot on the backside of the school, it’s probably open. Parking is available in that lot when school is closed and on nearby streets.

November 18, 2019 0

Warner Elementary, Part 1

Warner cul-de-sac mural street art Nashville

What better place than an art school for a mural! In fact, Warner Arts Magnet Elementary has two new murals, courtesy of Andee Rudloff. The long thin one above is found on retaining wall around the cul-de-sac in front of the school. As is her usual technique, Rudloff worked with the clients, that is the students, to develop ideas, then painted the outlines. Later, students pitched in to help color the mural. Rudloff has worked with a number of other schools, and her colorful, playful style has an obvious appeal to kids (of all ages!). Themes found in this mural include playgrounds, cityscapes, theater, school buses, and friends. There is also a giant pencil with the school’s name on top of the wall (see the second slide show below). It certainly brightens up the wait to pick up or drop off a child!

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Located at 628 Russell Street, between the school and East Park. Street parking and parking at the park are available. It might be best to visit on the weekends or after school hours.

June 24, 2019 1

There flys a peace crane

For once, I’m blogging about an almost new mural. The Wish for Peace mural on the side of the Global Education building on Charlotte appeared only a few weeks ago at most. It’s a production of WHAT. Creative Group, also known as Jake and Hana Elliott. They are responsible for some other projects around town, including the mural featured in Don’t miss your ride! It was sponsored both by the local office of Google Fiber (who’ve been promoting a lot of art, lately) and the Nashville Walls Project, though it’s new enough that as of this post it isn’t yet featured anywhere on NWP’s website. I’m really ahead of the curve this time! And why origami cranes? Well, it seems that origami peace cranes are a thing. Specifically, they commemorate the life of Sadako Sasaki, who died at age 12 in 1955 of leukemia induced by radiation exposure she experienced when the bomb fell on her hometown, Hiroshima. Sadako folded cranes in her final days, as her father told her that folding a thousand of them would grant a wish.

Located at 4822 Charlotte Pike. The mural faces east, directly across from Hugh Baby’s, where Porter Road Butcher used to be. There is some limited street parking on 49th Ave, and there is parking across Charlotte at Richland Park. Or you could get a burger at Hugh Baby’s and enjoy the art!

January 14, 2018 2

Oz Arts Inside/Out, Part 4

Seems I missed one of the Oz Arts Inside/Out installations when I first reported on them. There is, in fact, a display at Meharry Medical College. Many of the people in this mural are wearing Meharry gear, and there was a shoot for the project at Meharry last June, so I’m assuming all of these people are Meharry folk. See Part 1 for more details. The two blocked faces are below.

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Located at 1003 Dr. D.B. Todd Jr. Blvd, on the east facing wall of the Office of Information and Technology (otherwise know as the Computer Center, per the sign). The Computer Center lies on the block between Meharry Blvd. and Albion Street. This is dead in the middle of a large university complex (Fisk University is across the street), so parking is problematical. There is a paid parking garage on Albion. The spaces in front of the mural are reserved, though for a quick visit in the late afternoon you can probably get away with using them.

March 8, 2017 3

With mind and spirit soaring

That’s the motto of the Episcopal School of Nashville, who commissioned Chip Boles to produce this mural to grace their parking lot/basketball court. Boles, whose mural work seems to be mostly in indoor locations, used the theme as inspiration for “Nashville Community,” as he has dubbed the mural. Familiar Nashville icons grace the mural, though I’ve seen more possums than raccoons myself! There is also a more abstract piece behind it that pushes the limits of the term “public art.” While the Boles mural is clearly visible from Woodland Street, the other piece (last picture at the bottom), while outdoors, can only be clearly seen if you get up on the porch of the school building, which you would need permission from the school operators to do. We’ll call it “hidden art.” My guess is it is also temporary student art.

Located at 419 Woodland Street, just west of St. Ann’s Episcopal Church, near the corner of 5th and Woodland. The parking lot has a gate, but it is often open after hours. During the school day this is, of course, a working school, so you should probably not approach without permission. The Boles mural is fairly easy to see from the street if the gate is locked.