Uptown and Around Mural Walk
If you stop and take a look around Athens, you most assuredly will notice the abundance of murals present. Some are in plain sight; others are not so easy to find. This tour will take you to some of these prominent and hidden murals in close proximity to Court Street. There are ten locations in this walk, beginning and ending with avant-garde painter Aethelred Eldridge murals.
For some murals, unfortunately no artist is identified. If you know the muralist, or if you have any information to add to the mural descriptions, please email your suggestions to amac@ci.athens.oh.us.
This tour will take you to some prominent and hidden murals in close proximity to Court Street. If you decide to view them in order, free parking is located at the Richland Ave. Park (8493 Dairy Ln, Athens, OH 45701). It will take approximately 1 - 2 hours to walk and see all of these murals.
01 / 10
1
Richland Ave. Tunnel Mural
As one walks through the tunnel under St Rt 682 at the Richland Ave roundabout, the cacophony of cars passing overhead lends succinctly to the beat-esque poetry and the frozen gyrations of humanoids and their accouterments as concocted by muralist Aethelred Eldridge.
2
Real Detective
Find the alleyway behind The Union in order to uncover Real Detective, whose representations demand interpretation. Foreboding yet leisurely, sip a cup of coffee with a six-eyed lady, or take a dip in the pool alongside a demon-spawn incarnate emerging from the still waters.
3
The International Peace Mural
The International Peace Mural displays the asset of diversity found in the Athens community. The concept of peace is expressed in several languages held by children of the world, framed by the State bird, the Northern Cardinal and a map of Athens.
4
Without Labor, Nothing Prospers
Without Labor, Nothing Prospers by Chris Stain, pays homage to the workers in the area's coal industry. This mural is based off of the photograph, Coal Miners, taken in Birmingham, Alabama, in 1937 by Arthur Rothstein for the Farm Security Administration (FSA).
5
Passion Works / Turn It Gold Mural
The Passion Works Studio Mural displays fanciful and bold colors with a range of subject matter. Turn it Gold, a non-profit organization which fosters athletic activism to recognize National Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, worked in collaboration with Passions Works Studio to create this mural.
6
The Sculpture Park at the Armory
The Sculpture Park at the Athens Armory is a wonderful space to just be. In 2019, this space was created with the help of community volunteers and various local groups. The park offers several inviting places to sit, walk, and contemplate.
7
Release
The vivid colors that strike the evening skies dip and play with a flight of doves — or are they pigeons? — on this Simpson Ave. mural. The artist shares that the extreme close up of one bird’s eye is meant to contrast with the distant fliers as a nod to the cycles within our daily lives.
8
Rollerbowl Lanes
Located at Rollerbowl Lanes, this Keith Wilde mural makes a clear and powerful statement regarding what's occurring within those walls. Seemingly in motion, the sun-like orb of a bowling ball effortlessly knocks down pins. A perfect 300 every time.
9
Unmuted Harmony
The Music House Mural, Unmuted Harmony , adorns the front of 93 Mill St. Painted in 2008, it is dedicated to the Athens Community. Vibrant energy is communicated through the dynamic depiction of visually represented sound and music.
10
Eldridge Mural, beneath Seigfred Hall
This is the final stop on our Mural Walk giving a fitting closure with beginning and ending murals by avant-garde painter Aethelred Eldridge. This imposing 50-by-80 foot mural has gone through several “incarnations” starting in the mid/late 1960's. The one you see before you is the fourth version completed in the 1980s and restored in the summer of 2015.
The Uptown and Around Mural Walk is the first in a series of Mural Walks created by The Athens Municipal Arts Commission (AMAC). Stay tuned for additional walking tours exploring other areas of the Athens community.
To get back to the Richland Ave. Park, put 8493 Dairy Ln, Athens, OH 45701 in your GPS. It will be an approximately 10 minute / 1 mile walk back from mural stop #10. Keep an eye out for new murals on the way!
If you enjoyed this tour, check out more tours from mAppAthens HERE!