Folk Art Park reopens after renovations

First installed for 1996 Olympics, artwork gets fresh new look.

The artwork was restored with new paint, concrete and metal. Anti-skateboarding devices and bird deterrents were also added.

Harold Rittenberry, an Athens artist in his late 70s, stood staring at his welded-steel sculpture that was erected in downtown Atlanta more than 20 years ago.

“I’m amazed. They said they were going to take care of it, and they did,” the artist said Thursday morning.

Rittenberry and a few dozen city leaders and artists were gathered at the partial reopening of Folk Art Park, a public art project that was commissioned for the Centennial Olympic Games in 1996.

The result of a 1994 international design competition won by University of Georgia art professor Robert Clements, 67 works from 23 southern artists were placed across two cement bridges over Interstate 75/85.

But over the years, the park and its pieces had become damaged and weathered.

In an effort to restore the collection, the Atlanta Public Art Legacy group requested funding for improvements.

The Georgia Department of Transportation provided about $300,000, and the Atlanta Downtown Improvement District contributed $100,000 for the preliminary design and engineering.

The artwork was restored with new paint, concrete and metal. Anti-skateboarding devices, bird deterrents to protect the sculptures, along with additional lighting and signage about the art were also added.

Clements, standing alongside Rittenberry at the intersection of Piedmont Avenue at Baker Street, said the restoration was so important because many of the artists have passed away; he guessed “probably two-thirds” in the last 20 years.

“So it’s like a time capsule,” he said.

The installation includes work from regional folk artists like former Atlanta city councilman Archie Byron, North Carolina’s Vollis Simpson and Alabama’s Lonnie Holley. Another area of the park, located at Courtland Street at Ralph McGill Boulevard, is scheduled to be restored next.

BOB ANDRES PHOTOS / BANDRES@AJC.COM The steel sunshade structure and two-toned pavement are based on the designs of nine southern quilt makers for Folk Art Park. GDOT’s first public art project, created in 1996 as part of the city’s Olympics projects, reopened Thursday.

Artist Harold Rittenberry and original architect Bob Clements sit among benches created by Rittenberry. The renovated park is located above interstates 75 and 85 in Atlanta.