Search

nashville public art

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

Tag

#wedgewoodhouston

Bending Normal

This piece, “Bending Normal” (2017), by Brooklyn artist Marcus Manganni, has stood in front of The Packing Plant (a building with several small art galleries) since September 2017. If you visit during the First Saturday Wedgewood-Houston art crawl, you’re likely to see people walking around, taking pictures, or just studying the different ways it catches the light from different angles. What you see when you see it, what you get when you shoot, depends entirely on where you are standing, what time of year and what time of day it is, and most certainly what the light is like. You can see from the light and reflections in these photos that I took them last winter. Shoot them now, and that half-finished building would now reflect as finished. No two pictures of the piece will ever be the same. And that’s probably the point. As Manganni noted in an interview with The Tennessean and as he was quoted in The Nashville Scene, “Bending Normal” is a direct response to the statue of Nathaniel Bedford Forrest by Jack Kershaw that’s visible from I-65  south of downtown. Other than saying his piece “sends the exact opposite message” of the Forrest sculpture, Manganni doesn’t directly explain how it is in opposition to Kershaw’s piece. My suggestion is that the very ambiguity of “Bending Normal,” that what it is and what it looks like is fluid, despite its hard crisp lines, is precisely that “opposite message.” “Bending Normal” poses more questions than it answers, while Kershaw’s piece asserts its truth and dares us to say otherwise. Certainly, Manganni’s piece is up for much richer interpretations than the statue of Forrest. (And it occurs to me – the Forrest statue is in Davidson County. I guess I have to put it on the blog. “No art left behind” and all that.) You can check out Manganni’s own photos of “Bending Normal” here.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Located at 507 Hagan Street, at the corner with Gray Street. When it’s not art crawl, parking in the gravel lot across the street is easy, and there is parking along Gray Street as well. During art crawl, I recommend getting there early (6:00ish) or plan on parking farther away.

Arena Imprints

Arena mural street art Nashville

Located in Wedgewood-Houston, Arena Imprints provides – well can you guess from the mural? Like the saying goes, “exactly what it says on the tin.” Or in this case the mural. Arena is the place to go to order up screen printed apparel (and they do some other kinds of printing as well). A company that that does graphics production really ought to have a well-designed sign, particularly in Wedgewood-Houston, known for its art scene. This one was produced by Terrance Haynes of TerNan Art Production, a collaboration between Haynes and Nanella Henderson. And here we see another Nashville skyline featuring the Batman Building, a common motif in Nashville murals. We do love our Batman Building!

Located at 467 Chestnut Street. The mural is found on the north-east side of the building, facing a large parking lot. Parking available there and on the street-facing side of the building.

 

Mystery bird

Bird mural street art Nashville

Some months ago, this mural caught my eye while I was driving down Fourth Avenue, just before it merges with Second and becomes Nolensville Pike. It turned about to be on the back side of a building at 1281 Third Avenue. The building seemed to be under renovation, and some research shows that it is supposed to become Bar1281, a “pop-up” backyard bar with Hawaiian and  Japanese style food. It’s part of a larger development on this street being developed by Bento Box. It was also slated to open last October, but that date has come and gone without an opening. The mystery comes in the signature, which is probably “Stenz Art” but might be “Steitz Art.” Both have been complete rabbit holes to try to track down. While the bar is late in opening, construction on the back patio continues, and this shot is impossible to get any more, as the mural is now partially obscured.

UPDATE: It is indeed “Steitz Art.” I don’t know why I couldn’t find that link before.

Located at 1281 Third Avenue. There is some limited street parking on Third. As this is an active construction site, it might be best to wait until Bar 1281 opens to come and view the mural (and when you get some food and drinks to go with your art).

Gabby’s

Gabby's mural street art Nashville

Normally I would try to avoid posting a photo of a mural with stuff piled in front of it, but the tables and chairs on this patio at Gabby’s Burgers & Fries are a permanent part of the decor. Gabby’s opened in 2009 in what for many years had been the site of the historic Hap Townes restaurant beloved by many. Seriously, click right now and read that article by one of Nashville’s greatest writers, Tim Ghianni. I’m sorry I never got a chance to eat there, but apparently, the burgers at Gabby’s are pretty good. Along with a new menu came new art. The website link for the artist Vince Herrera painted on the mural is dead, but it wasn’t too hard to track down his Facebook and Instagram pages. On Instagram, you can see a few photos that show the process and reveal a few features now blocked by furniture, as well as telling us that Herrera has help from Mari Cristina. Apparently, this mural went up in July 2013. I’ve driven by that spot many times, but only noticed it recently. From the road, it is in something of a blink-and-you-miss-it spot. Take the time to look behind buildings – sometimes there’s art back there!

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Located at 493 Humpries Street. The restaurant is actually at the corner of Chestnut and Hagan streets, near Greer Stadium, while its parking lot faces Humphries. The mural is on the back side of the building. There is parking at Gabby’s and nearby side streets.

Alien attack!

Space Invaders Batman mural street art Nashville
The Wedgewood-Houston area is, of course, a major part of the Nashville arts scene, and it’s no surprise to find public art there. Here we see the true purpose of the Batman Building — an anti-aircraft weapon to defend us from space invaders! This piece is fairly recent (it doesn’t appear in Google street view), and is signed by Rönzi, a local artist.

Located on the north wall of American Hotel Liquidators at 525 Hagan Street. A relatively easy area to park in. Check out Dozen Bakery across the street.

Powered by WordPress.com.

Up ↑