By: John Fleming
Public art can define a place. Done right it makes a statement, conveys to anyone having a passing interest… this is who we are, this is what we value. It is also a declaration of and an embrace of, the collective.
And what are we in Candler Park but a collective?
Every great city commits to public art. See the Bean in Chicago’s Grant Park, The Charging Bull on Manhattan’s Wall Street. Do a little digging and you will discover it is everywhere and right here. More and more, Atlanta is becoming known as a city of murals. That goes for neighborhoods too, including ours. Freedom Park would be a lesser place without the long-resident pieces including The Tree of Life, (at Oakdale and North) and the Self Portrait III (the metal globe near Freedom Parkway and Highland) scattered along the Path. And now there’s the new L5P sculpture in Findley Plaza. All of these, they express our values, our nature, our subtle humor, our playfulness… what we hold dear.
Now comes an opportunity to up Candler Park’s public art profile, this time along McLendon Avenue.
Imagine, now, for a moment, a mile of public art, stretching from that L5P anchor at Findley Plaza, all the way to Clifton, a continuous line of statements, sprinkled on the bulb-outs, along the verge between the curb and the sidewalk, in our green spaces and across the facades of the homes of willing owners.
What kind of art, you ask? Well, this is where you come in. This will be a collective effort, a project for and by the residents of Candler Park. and that includes your designs, your ideas.
“Community buy-in will be important to the project’s success,” says Eric Dusenbury, the chair of an informal committee promoting the project. “So we are trying to make the process as open as possible; anyone is welcome to join our committee. We hope some neighborhood artists are inspired to submit proposals. Ideally we will get some installations that reflect the spirit of Candler Park, which I see as being unique and somewhat funky.”
He believes this is the right place to take up such an ambitious project. He’s lived in Candler Park for 34 years and believes in our capacity to achieve. “I have always viewed Candler Park as an art-friendly neighborhood and hope it will embrace this effort,” he says. “When traveling to other cities I am frequently impressed by how much I enjoy their public art. It helps define a space and make it memorable.”
That’s art as we see, the residents of Candler Park see it and create it. This means thinking big, creative, meaningful, playful, distinct and hyper-local.
EXAMPLES OF POSSIBLE ART PIECES ALONG MCLENDON AVENUE
Think big, but start small
From Moreland to Clifton is a lot, so the idea at this point is to start smaller and prove the concept. The informal pocket park is a starting place. That’s the empty field at McLendon and Ferguson. From here, the thinking goes, a collection of creativity might emerge from this meadow and the adjacent intersection, offering some inspiration to spread up and down a nearly mile’s length of McLendon.
One person firmly supporting the project is Mellie DeRouen, who lives on McLendon, across from the pocket park.
“I’m very excited about the McLendon Mile Project,” she said. “As a resident of 35 years, we’ve seen so many transformations of McLendon, from the Clifton business district art with Christine Sibley’s fountains & art at Felini’s and LaFonda to the Candler Park Market mural painted by Mary Lin students, the bulbouts planted and customized by neighbors to Sean’s ‘Little Candler ‘ corner. The neighborhood has always been a Mecca for artists and architects,” she continues. “The McLendon Mile Project will highlight the neighborhood’s appreciation of all forms of art and those who create, share and honor it.”
Good stuff, but rest assured all this will go nowhere without the input and backing of the neighborhood.
“A quality demonstration project is essential to achieve our long-term goals,” says Eric Dusenbury, the chair of the McLendon Mile Committee formed by the CPNO board to support the project. “We have one chance to make a first impression and want it to be a good one. Unfortunately, this requires financial resources. The committee is exploring private and public funding and is hoping CPNO will be part of this. Grants will provide some funding but most larger grants are geared towards economically disadvantaged areas and for historically disenfranchised populations.”
Energy for this effort is coming from a number of long-time residents of Candler Park, like Dusenbury and DeRouen. But the younger generation is also bringing it to the project as well.
David Yap, a committee member, is 29 and has lived in Candler park for a year and a half.
“I joined the McLendon Mile committee,” he says, “because McLendon is often one of the only parts of Candler Park that non-residents see and I wanted to be a part of a solution that made the street more visually interesting whilst adding character to the neighborhood.”
You might say he’s bringing some youthful energy to an old neighborhood.
The McLendon Mile Committee was established by the CPNO board in March of 2026. Since then, the committee has recruited members, brainstormed ideas, and met with property owners along McLendon to discuss installing art on their properties. This included the City, Neighborhood Church, homeowners, and business owners. Everyone was receptive and supportive of the effort.
Between now and the end of the year, the McLendon Mile Committee will be finalizing the scope of work of the first phase of the project. They will determine locations and develop requests for proposals (RFPs) for the locations. They will also start raising funds for the project. The Committee hopes to formally issue the RFPs in the second quarter of 2027 and to start installations in the second half of 2027.
If you are interested in participating, have questions or want to submit an idea or design, please email McLendonMile@CandlerPark.org.
Currently, committee members include the following residents of Candler Park.
- Eric Dusenbury – Chair, Iverson
- Allen Broyles, Iverson
- John Fleming, Euclid Avenue
- Trevor Gray, Josephine
- Shania Gray, Josephine
- Bill Moore, McLendon
- Miyoung Russell, North
- David Yap, Oakdale
