Client: Savannah College of Art and Design

Overview

Serving communities we call home through public art. Design principles underpin every creative decision at SCAD. From centering users to ensuring usability, SCAD’s approach to design challenges demands innovative design solutions. Most importantly, SCAD emphasizes the needs of communities as much as individuals, creating solutions that address community needs and encourage community connection and participation. This is evident in neighborhood initiatives like SCAD Paint Our Parks (POP) where Atlanta Georgia’s Joyland neighborhood features the now-vibrant Arthur Langford Jr. Park court at its center. Recharged with new artwork, the basketball court at Atlanta’s Arthur Langford Jr. Park is today a beacon for community connectivity and engagement. The intersection of art and sports is accessible to all. By bringing art to the park, SCAD and the City of Atlanta have nurtured active communities and welcomed creative thinking through elevated design.

Goals

SCAD Paint Our Parks (POP) revitalizes shared public spaces in underserved communities to foster connection and engagement. In urban areas, usable and accessible shared public spaces are often one of the few, if not the only, places for recreation and family gatherings. Access to safe and welcoming public parks enhances health, social well-being, the environment, and communities. Where communities can access park services, health outcomes increase by an average of 25 percent. And, studies show that 80 percent of residents regard parks as valuable for their quality of life. In recognition of the many opportunities that foster community connection, this project united artists, students, and volunteers with municipalities fostering enhanced services throughout underserved communities to revitalize and beautify shared public spaces. The outcome is the much-celebrated and ongoing SCAD POP design for good initiative.

Process

In 10 days, a team of more than 60 SCAD volunteers comprised of students, alumni, faculty, and staff, a group of enthusiastic Joyland community volunteers, and family members of the late Arthur Langford, Jr. leveraged their creative superpowers to create a vibrant 100-foot by 100-foot mural on the basketball courts at Arthur Langford, Jr. Park. This dynamic SCAD POP showpiece enhances the shared recreational space at this popular community park and fosters a unified celebration of the power of the arts.