Tallahassee, FL
Commemorating a neighborhood’s history on its streets
The Project
The Greater Bond neighborhood in Tallahassee was selected for an asphalt art intervention by the Council on Culture & Arts (COCA) and the City of Tallahassee’s Parks, Recreation, and Neighborhood Affairs (PRNA) Department due to its cultural importance within Tallahassee and its historically underserved status. The intersections of Saxon and Tucker, Osceola, and Linear Park were chosen due to their proximity to schools, churches, and the new Linear Park. Asphalt art provides a low technology method to protect crosswalks near these areas of heavy pedestrian traffic.
Finalist artists were selected through an open call process, and voting was opened to the community to determine the three final designs for the Greater Bond neighborhood. These murals inspired the community to connect with their environment and to remember their history through iconography which connects with its surroundings. The artists painted the murals over the course of two days in May 2023, with the help of 168 volunteers from the surrounding area. Community response was overwhelming, with each site having at least double the number of expected volunteers joining the paint day efforts. This project gave the Greater Bond community a sense of shared creative expression and pride in their neighborhood’s history and people.
- The percentage of neighborhood residents who chose Saxon Street for their daily walking route increased from 30% to 60%
- The percentage of neighborhood residents who felt positively about the intersections increased from 30% to 100%
Use the slider to see the transformation
“This project is near and dear to my heart because many partners came together to take a community vision and combine it with the business of art to make this happen.”
Talethia Edwards, President, Greater Bond Neighborhood Association
Press
Three streets have colorful new look in Tallahassee’s Bond Community (Tallahassee Democrat, June 14, 2023)
The Greater Bond Community Receives A New Makeover (WTXL, May 26, 2023)
Asphalt Art Project gets Going (tallahassee.com, May 25, 2023)
For inspiration and tips for the creation of art on roadways and public places, download the Bloomberg Associates Asphalt Art Guide which features successful plaza and roadway art activations around the world, as well as key steps for developing such projects.
