By Eric Curl
Sept. 14, 2024 – Local artist Brian MacGregor started work on a street mural in Cloverdale last week. Feedback from the community has been great, MacGregor said.
One comment that MacGregor said tugged at his heart was from a guy on a bike who said, ‘Thats too nice, we don’t deserve that.”
“Everyone deserves art,” MacGregor said. “I am always amazed by how a splash of color can positively change the mood of the area’s surroundings.”
MacGregor’s “Magnolia Mural” was selected by the city following a request for proposals in April for an asphalt art installation meant to slow down motorists within the 1/3 of a mile section of the neighborhood road between Cynthia and Delano streets. Essentially a mural painted on the roadway, the street art would work in conjunction with speed humps currently in place, as previously reported.
MacGregor has been documenting the progress of the project on social media after meeting with the community beforehand to explain the process, respond to questions and receive input. His photos document the process from the beginning stages showing a grid and outline of the drawing on the street with barricades surrounding it, with one lane of traffic closed off as he works in sections, and ultimately closing off the other lane as he moves to the mural’s other half.
Such projects, including intersection murals, crosswalk art, and painted plazas or sidewalk extensions, have existed for years and are growing in popularity in communities across the world, according to a 2022 asphalt art safety study commissioned by Bloomberg Philanthropies.
This would be Savannah’s first such project, after Phillip Kalogitonas, Capital Projects Liaison, originated the idea during his time in the City Manager’s Emerging Leaders Program—an internal program designed to empower future leaders through training and mentoring, according to city spokesperson Joshua Peacock.
The location in Cloverdale was chosen because of the neighborhood’s ongoing concerns for pedestrian safety due to speeding motorists, but it could become an option for other communities if it is determined to effective, Peacock said in May.
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