Explore Chattanooga Spring 2023

Spotlight | WHAT TO SEE Chattanooga Street Art Series: MURALS T he murals in Chattanooga give a nod to the past, to playfulness, and to beauty found in nature and cultural diversity. Step around any corner downtown and there’s a chance you’ll spot a building or wall painted with a one-of-a-kind piece of art. A nod to the past, playfulness, & beauty What Lifts You The Artist: Renowned globally, Kelsey Montague

Buttafly Transportal The Artist: Eric Finley, known as The Artist SEVEN, took to visual arts as a child drawing comic books and Marvel characters at home. He first embraced graffiti as a college student in Atlanta, Ga., offering to cover graffiti tags at a gas station with something one-of-a-kind. A Chattanooga native, he is known for his bold color and large-scale pieces commissioned across the southeast. The Process: Inspired by a photography session with model Jakie Lam, SEVEN says it was Lam’s pose – relaxing on a stone wall, arms folded across her chest – that inspired Buttafly Transportal, which he has said is his favorite mural painted in 2019. Today SEVEN has more than 30 murals publicly on display in the Chattanooga area. Each piece is meant to increase appreciation for street art and develop cultural awareness. Location: 301 West Main Street

grew up lingering in her grandfather’s art studio, competing with her sister to see who could find the bird in his paintings first. As a young adult, she studied art in Florence, Italy and has a degree in Art, Design & Media from Richmond University in England. The Process: A decade after her grandfather died, Montague was commis sioned for a mural in New York City. Her desire was to give people a chance to feel flight, to feel strength.

Since then, she has painted wings in more than 50 cities including Chattanoo ga, Los Angeles, Pittsburg, Miami, Detroit, Ann Arbor, and Nashville (in col laboration with Taylor Swift). Ultimately, the wings are a nod to her faith and her grandfather. It’s also an invitation for the viewer to complete the creative vision. “My murals specifically invite people into a piece and then invite people to share their experience online,” she writes on her website. “I believe that art should not be separated from the human experience. Instead the human experience should have a hand in creating the art itself.”

One of Chattanooga’s most popular selfie spots. Location: 1501 Long Street Street, on the side of Five Wits Brewing Company

ADDITIONAL NOTEWORTHY MURALS AROUND CHATTANOOGA:

Yoda Mural: Brainerd Rd. – The Artist Seven Highland Park Community Mural: 1516 E. Main St.– Nathan Brown and community members Communal Kaleidoscope: 1409 Market St.– Alecia Vera and Briah Gober

Fallen Five: 1704 McCallie Ave.– Kevin Bate The Soul of MLK: E. 10th St. and Foster St. Dr. Martin Luther King Mural: 734 E. MLK Blvd.– Kevin Bate

Spring 2023