This story was originally published by ArtsATL.
It is ironic that Little Five Points, one of Atlanta’s most diverse areas, began its existence as the segregated business district serving the whites-only Inman Park neighborhood. Back in the 1890s, the spot where several of the newly installed trolley lines converged was the natural place for commerce to flourish. And flourish it did until the 1960s, when the threat of highway construction through the neighborhood caused a population exodus and subsequent economic decline.
Today, Little Five Points has bounced back as Atlanta’s answer to Haight-Ashbury, with indie businesses featuring vintage clothing, vinyl records, vegan food, CBD products and more. The sentinel to this Bohemian hood is a giant skull with a gaping mouth forming the doorway to the Vortex, a popular burger joint. When visiting L5P, as it’s known, be on the lookout for street vendors, street performers and street art.
Here is a sampling of the best street art that Little Five Points has to offer:
Photo by Arthur Rudick
Photo by Arthur Rudick
Starting off on the side wall of 1083 Euclid Ave., Dr. Dax’s iconic bubble letters come into view spelling out the famous Martin Luther King Jr. quote: “Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.” Cleveland, Ohio, native Dax Rudnak is one of Atlanta’s graffiti pioneers. In addition to being an artist, he is also a musician, actor, video producer and founding member of a collective of hip-hop artists known as the Dungeon Family, boasting members such as Big Boi, André 3000, CeeLo Green, Sleepy Brown and others.
Photo by Arthur Rudick
Photo by Arthur Rudick
Just before his 30th birthday, Justin Vallee (aka Fallen Rose) gave up his comfortable career in the landscaping business to become a full-time street artist. On the other side of the building from Dr. Dax, Fallen Rose painted one of his murals in the Lady Death series. Other murals in this series make their homes in Portugal, Miami, Prague, London and Knoxville. The monochromatic grayscale piece features two characters, one alive and the other skeleton-like, surrounded by the artist’s trademark roses. This mural series was inspired by a woman named Carol, Vallee’s muse who lives in Lisbon, Portugal, and with whom Vallee fell in love while traveling the world making art.
Photo by Arthur Rudick
Photo by Arthur Rudick
David Fichter paints epic murals, and the one titled “Singing in the Dark Times” painted on the side of the 7 Stages Theatre in 1992 is no exception. This 22-foot tall by 145-foot-long story is divided into several sections showing images from the theater from different time periods and cultures. According to Fichter’s website, the subjects include: “Paul Robeson as Emperor Jones, Bertolt Brecht, Lorraine Hansberry, Teatro Campesino, the San Francisco Mime Troupe, the Dance Brigade (formerly the Wallflower Order), Dario Fo and others.”
Photo by Arthur Rudick
Photo by Arthur Rudick
Fine artist, caricaturist and muralist Jarrett Becke created two memorials on the side of 1125 Euclid Ave. The first mural shows the police mug shot of a 21-year-old John Lewis taken after he was arrested for using a whites-only bathroom in Jackson, Mississippi, during the Freedom Rides of 1961. The second mural remembers British-American rapper and producer Daniel Dumile, better known by his stage name MF Doom. The rapper was known for his intricate wording and for wearing a metal mask as part of his onstage supervillain persona.
Photo by Arthur Rudick
Photo by Arthur Rudick
The cramped and slanted alley next to 451 Moreland Ave. terminates in a gobsmacking vista of Atlanta’s famous OutKast mural created for Outer Space Project 2019. Spray-painted by photorealistic muralist JEKS, this masterwork is based on photos taken of the Grammy Award–winning duo Big Boi and André 3000 by hip-hop photographer Jonathan Mannion for the Fader magazine in 2000. In a 2020 interview, Mannion said, “These are culture creators. Man, it’s so phenomenal but they’re legendary. They’re royalty, and they deserve that mural.”
Photo by Arthur Rudick
Photo by Arthur Rudick
Chris Veal’s little wall at 451 Moreland Ave. punches above its weight. Veal has held court at this location for over 10 years. Subjects for the artist’s murals at this spot have included Jimi Hendrix, a cartoon lampooning our dependency on technology, a hand holding a Valium capsule, a portrait of Salvador Dalí and a memorial to beloved Atlanta graffiti luminary Nelson “Nels” Guzman. The artist’s latest offering is a halftone image of a romantic couple with the caption “Get me flowers,” similar in style to painter Roy Lichtenstein.
Photo by Arthur Rudick
Photo by Arthur Rudick
Sharing an alcove with Chris Veal’s wall is a mural by Lisette Correa, who goes by Arrrtaddict. The artist’s Instagram profile says: “My mission is simple. Captivate through color, unite through similarities, connect with stories and SPREAD LOVE THROUGH ARRRT!” Arrtaddict’s work titled “Dreamer” features Martin Luther King Jr. Correa’s works are always colorful, and this one is true to form. Perhaps the mural’s array of beautiful colors might bring to mind the diversity of the world envisioned in Dr. King’s dream.
Photo by Arthur Rudick
Photo by Arthur Rudick
The mural on the side of the Sevananda Natural Foods Market at 467 Moreland Ave. was painted by Muhammad Yungai. Fairtrade America, a nonprofit organization that certifies ethical treatment of workers and farmers in developing countries, sponsored the artwork. It tells the story of cocoa farmer Agnes Senesie, who inherited her cocoa farm when her husband died in the civil war fought in Sierra Leone from 1991 to 2002. She is the sole breadwinner for her three children and elderly mother. The Fairtrade organization gave Agnes technical and financial assistance and helped her to diversify her crops. As a Fairtrade member, Senesie now receives a fair price for her farm’s produce.
Photo by Arthur Rudick
Photo by Arthur Rudick
At the cul-de-sac at the south end of Seminole Avenue, Mr. Totem recently refreshed his wall with a visual love letter to his fellow dads titled “The Only Hood I’m from Is Fatherhood.” “This one’s for my rad dads and committed fathers that love and support their babies,” the artist wrote in an Instagram post. “The children just don’t know how much they saved our lives. If it wasn’t for my sons, I think my days as a legit scoundrel might have gone on far too long.” The centerpiece of the wall is one of Mr. Totem’s trademark body style graffiti pieces where dads and their offspring form the letters of “TOTEM.” Be on the lookout for Mr. Totem to refresh more of his murals around town in the coming months.
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Arthur Rudick created the Atlanta Street Art Map in 2017 after retiring from a successful career as an engineer with Eastman Kodak and the Coca-Cola Company. His first experience of art was seeing an Alexander Calder mobile as a child in the Pittsburgh airport. Rudick is ArtsATL’s street art expert and a regular contributor.
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