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Nashville murals, street art, graffiti, signs, sculptures and more

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The Dog

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Outside of Lewis Country Store on Ashland City Highway, you can find this metal gunslinger. It’s something of an ode to 2nd Amendment rights, as the plaque quotes the amendment and admonished us to “Come and take it.” The store owner, Renee Lewis, has been known for taking provocative stands. Regardless, it’s a fun piece, made by Ryan Barbour of Barrel House Metal and Woodworking in Clarksville. The materials are reclaimed scraps from Richmond Machine Service, also in Clarksville. Look close – you may have already figured out the snake is made of metal, but so too are the plants. The plaque also lets us know that the statue is called “The Dog” and is dedicated to the memory of Ronald Douglas Doggett (1948-2000).

Located at 5106 Old Hickory Boulevard, at the corner with Ashland City Highway. The store and the statue face the highway. The store has plenty of parking. Load up on food and sundries and enjoy the art!

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I believe in not standing in line

IBelieveShelby

One of the most talked-about and photographed murals in town is the “I Believe in Nashville” mural in 12 South by Adrien Saporiti of DCXV Industries. When it was vandalized and then restored, local news covered it. It even has its own Facebook page, along with other versions of the mural found at Basement East and Marathon Village. The one in 12 South, on the north side of Archangel Esthetics, is the champ, with people standing in sometimes quite long lines to get their picture taken. Only the wings mural by Kelsey Montague featured in Sometimes you have to be obvious rivals it for Instagram portraits. The Marathon and Basement East ones generally don’t involve waiting, though they can. (The Basement East version is the best one for taking a selfie because it’s up high, and so you can angle your phone and get a decent shot.) But for the one above, I think I can guarantee you no waiting, ever. I’m not sure if this was actually done by Saporiti – it isn’t signed, and it doesn’t appear on the DCXV Instagram page or the “I Believe in Nashville” Facebook page. It’s on a retaining wall in front of a private home on Shelby, and may simply be a homage by the homeowners. Regardless, I’m listing it under Saproriti on the Artists page, as it is obviously his design. So come and get your unique, ivy-framed “I Believe in Nashville” portrait and be the envy of all your friends. And don’t stand in line.

UPDATE: Per the comment below, the mural was done by homeowner Jason T. Ryan.

Located at 906 Shelby Avenue. There is street parking on Shelby and Ninth. The mural is right off the sidewalk, facing north. This is a private home, so be respectful.

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Catered art

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Sadly, Carloyn’s Homestyle Kitchen has closed, at least as a restaurant. But as a catering service and a venue for art, it’s going strong. On the north side of the building, we see a scene from the inside (taken at a weird angle because of a fence), while on the back there are portraits, presumably of some of the staff at Carolyn’s. There is also on the south wall what appears to be a “lost” portrait, which I’ve included below. No apparent signatures, and the wear and tear suggests at least some of this has been here for a while. It does look similar to the art seen in Down at the corner and Northside Auto Clean Up, both of which are a few blocks away. The Buchanan Street area is undergoing rapid change, so the long-term fate of these paintings is unknown, but as part of neighborhood history, I hope they stick around.

Located at 1601 Ninth Avenue North, at the corner of Garfield Street. The main mural is on the north side of the building, visible from 9th, while the three ladies below are on the back, visible from Garfield. The lost portrait faces Garfield. Order up some good eats for your next party and enjoy the art!

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Mapping The Nations

Nations Map

One of the most prolific art scenes in Nashville is not found in any gallery or trendy neighborhood, but on the outer walls of the many Latino grocery stores scattered around town. Murals depicting the fruits and vegetables found inside or idealized images of the old country are common themes. The murals found in And another market and Mi casa es su casa are good examples. Usually, these are found in lower-income neighborhoods where immigrants tend to congregate. But what happens if one of those markets finds itself in a rapidly gentrifying neighborhood like The Nations? Well, the owners of the Savemore Super Market found themselves in that position and decided to transform their market into the 51st Deli. Most of the groceries went away in favor of a deli/taqueria with a large menu. A new identity called for new art. So they asked Ruben Torres, who had done the market’s original fruit-themed mural featured in Frutas!, to come up with something new – a shout out to neighborhood pride instead of the more traditional old country pride. Torres’s map is elegant, perhaps in keeping with the clean lines of the all the new condos and modern houses spreading across The Nations. If you can’t beat the gentrifiers, join them, would seem to be the message.

Located at 1314 51st Avenue North, at the corner with Centinneal Boulevard – where the red star is in the mural! The mural faces Centinneal and often has cars parked in front of it. There is parking at 51st Deli, though at lunchtime you might have to park on a neighboring street and walk a bit. Grab some grub and enjoy the art!

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Enrich lives through inspiration

ATS Mural

Often I don’t get around to posting art until long after it appears, but this time I’m almost guilty of journalism, as this piece was finished very recently. It’s by Adrianne Tuck Simonetti, who besides being a muralist is the Senior Creative Project Manager at the Country Music Hall of Fame. The building itself, found at the corner of Lea and Hermitage, is undergoing a transformation that as of last weekend was not quite complete, as the street in front was still blocked for construction. It will be the new home of the Nashville office of JE Dunn Construction, which commisioned the work by Simonetti. Once the construction is finished and the street fully open, expect to see this mural in many social media posts.

Located at 29 Hermitage Avenue. The mural lies on the southeast side of the building facing Lea Avenue. Right now Lea is partially closed and there is no parking on Lea from Rutledge Steet to Hermitage. There is some free street parking on and near Rutledge, and presumably more will be available when Lea fully reopens.

 

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The Johnny Cash Mural

Johnny Cash Mural street art Nashville

Sure, there’s more than one mural featuring Johnny Cash in this town. But this was one of the first, if not the very first. Or at least, the original one on this spot was. Bryan Deese, Audie Adams and Ryan Shrader of Thoughts Manifested produced a Cash mural on this spot not long after Cash’s death in 2003. However, by late 2012 it was in very bad shape, so the same three artists painted a new Cash mural to replace the original (and I do not know how close the second version is to the first). There is a video of them making the second mural. Now six years on, the second mural is somewhat worse for wear, and it faces more threats than just the weather and traffic smog. The little building it’s on is surrounded by some very expensive real estate, and it’s hard to imagine no developer has any interest in it. If you want your picture taken in front of it, you might want to do so soon.

UPDATE: This building has been slated for demolition. Get your selfie immediately!

UPDATE 2: This building and this mural no longer exist.

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Located at 300 4th Avenue South at the corner of 4th and Molloy Street. The mural faces Molloy. This is downtown, so lots of parking, almost none of it free.

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Last year’s heartthrob

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There’s a new mural in the 12 South neighborhood that’s been cropping up a lot on social media lately. People stand in line to get their picture taken in front of it. This is not it. But this is the place. When I do a Google image search for “Nashville mural,” this mural pops up first. Now, you might get something different, but it’s still likely to come up high on the list because for a long time, this Eastside Murals piece promoting the American Heart Association’s “Nashville at Heart” campaign featured in a whole lot of Instagram photos. Today, May 31, 2018, there is a marker on Google Maps for the “Nashville at Heart Mural.” Not too many murals get that level of recognition. But one day you’re at the top of the charts, and the next week you can’t get a gig at the Holiday Inn. Now “Nashville at Heart” has been replaced with an even jazzier mural. Do a search for #PeaceLoveGoodDeeds – you’ll find it. I suppose I’ll put it on this blog someday if I can get myself out of bed early enough to be there at dawn before the lines form. That’s how I got the picture above.

Located (formerly) at 2707 12th Avenue South, at the corner with Dallas Avenue, on the south wall of the Corner Music building.  This is 12 South – parking isn’t easy, though if you are willing to walk a block or two, there’s free parking on some side streets. You might want to ride share over. While this piece is gone, the surrounding neighborhood has lots of interesting art. Many will have lines – Just a few gents is unlikely to have one. Be original.

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