“The Storyteller,” perhaps the most iconic sculpture in Buckhead, recently was moved from Charlie Loudermilk Park and installed outside Buckhead Library.
At Loudermilk Park, formerly known as Triangle Park, the sculpture of a person with a buck’s head was positioned telling the history of the community to a group of turtles and dogs. In the sculpture’s new installation, the turtles have been removed. The cluster of sculptures now only features the dogs and occupies a much smaller area than when it was installed at the park.
It will be replaced at Loudermilk Park this year with a new 12-foot abstract metal sculpture titled “Aspiration” by architect and developer John Portman. Portman is known for such landmarks as the Peachtree Center hotel and office tower complex in Downtown Atlanta.
While “The Storyteller” is among the most well-known sculpture, there are several other pieces of art around Buckhead that the public can view. These sculptures are listed in the Buckhead Coalition’s 2017 “Buckhead Guidebook,” a product of the Buckhead Coalition, which can be read online at buckheadis.com.
The Great Fish
At 65 feet in height, it’s hard to miss “The Great Fish” when driving down Pharr Road. The fish is a 50-ton freestanding copper-coated steel sculpture coming out of a small fountain next to Atlanta Fish Market. It was created by Martin Dawe and Randy Blain in 1995 and cost $500,000. Creating it now would set the Buckhead Life Restaurant Group, the owners, back $2 million, according to an article in Simply Buckhead.
Atlanta Fish Market, 265 Pharr Road N.E.
South Music
Installed during renovations in 2007, the Angel Orensanz sculpture towers over the parking area of the Atlanta Decorative Arts Center. At night, the inside of each of the towers is lit with a different color. The center was founded by John Portman, an Atlanta architect and developer.
Atlanta Decorative Arts Center, 351 Peachtree Hills Ave.
Foxes
Unsuspecting professionals may stumble upon a pack of shiny gold foxes in a breezeway outside of Tower Place. Installed in 2008, these were created by R.E.M. lead singer Michael Stipe. In an information sheet outside the display, Stipe describes his piece. “Inspiration for the piece includes questions of permanence and ephemerality, and memorabilia; in this case, small plastic toys, their mass-produced uniformity, and challenging that, each of their individual markings,” he said.
3344 Peachtree Road N.E.
Endless Journey
Several sculpted tiles can be seen adorning the walls of the Buckhead MARTA station. The length of the artwork spans two football fields and is the largest art installment in any MARTA station, according to the artist’s website. The sculptures were originally created for the 1996 Olympic Games.
Buckhead MARTA Station, 3360 Peachtree Road N.W.
Peace Tree
Inside the Atlanta History Center’s Swan Woods Trail is the Atlanta branch of the Gardens for Peace, an international network promoting gardens as a place for meditation and peace. The sculpture depicts five life-sized people holding hands around a tree and was done by Georgi Japaridze. The artist is from Tiblisi, Georgia, one of Atlanta’s sister cities.
Atlanta History Center, 130 W. Paces Ferry Road.
Untitled sculpture at the entrance of Frankie Allen Park
Artist Jim Clover created the sculpture in 1973, which makes it one of the oldest sculptures still installed around Buckhead. It originally had a fountain in the base, but it was removed when it was moved from Charlie Loudermilk Park, then known as Triangle Park, to Frankie Allen Park, according to Buckhead Heritage.
Frankie Allen Park entrance, intersection of Bagley Street and Pharr Road.
Millstones and spoke wheel from Civil War era Collier’s Mill
The stones and wheel were formerly equipment for Collier’s Mill, a Civil War era grist mill. Plaques around the Collier Mills neighborhood and Tanyard Creek describe the area around the mill as the site of a bloody Civil War battle in 1864.
Across from Tanyard Creek Park, intersection of Collier Road and Redland Road.
St. Francis
The Cathedral of Saint Philip, an Episcopal church near the Garden Hills neighborhood, has a statue of St. Francis that was purchased in Rome in 1966. The cathedral itself is also has architecture worth seeing.
Cathedral of Saint Philip, 2744 Peachtree Road N.W.
The Kite Children
This sculpture was done by Gary Price, who also created several others around Tower Place. He completed this bronze sculpture of three children running with kites in 1995 and later in 1998 created “Boy Holding Boy,” “Giggles” and “Wings” which are all nearby.
Tower Place, 3340 Peachtree Road N.E.
They Will Soar on Wings
Paul Freundt, who typically makes metal furniture, created this abstract sculpture of wings coming off of arches. It was installed near the parking decks of Lenox Towers in 2008.
Lenox Towers, 3390-3400 Peachtree Road N.E.
Terry Lee
The Paralympics athlete is immortalized in bronze outside the spinal rehabilitation center. Lee competed in the wheelchair sprint, swimming, archery, shot put and javelin. The sculpture, dedicated in 1986, depicts Lee throwing a javelin. The Shepherd Center also has two other sculptures on the campus — “ Water of Life” by David Sampson and “With Compassion He Listens to All” by Victor Salmone.
Shepherd Center, 2020 Peachtree Road N.W.
Hippocrates
A marble bust of the famed ancient Greek physician is installed outside of Piedmont Hospital.
Piedmont Hospital,
1968 Peachtree Road N.W.
Lindbergh City Center sculptures
They are several sculptures to see inside Lindbergh City Center. Installed in 2004, the sculptures include “Hydrogen” by Zachary Coffin, “The Spirit of Travel” by Wayne Trapp, “Linkage” by Phil Proctor and “Diversity” by Anthony Liggins.
Lindbergh City Center, 575 Morosgo Drive N.E.
Urban Quartet
A grouping of modern abstract sculptures by John Scott can be seen outside Monarch Tower.
Monarch Tower, 3424 Peachtree Road N.E.