Athens is a gold mine for the arts. Between the University of Georgia’s commitment to art education and the larger community’s promotion of local talent, there exists a richness of spirit and culture unique to this college town.
For the first time ever, UGA introduced a four-day Arts Festival featuring fine and decorative arts exhibits, as well as musical and theatrical performances. Honoring UGA’s new home for arts education, the festival kicked off with the Lamar Dodd School of Art building dedication, which our development team attended this past Thursday. We were very impressed by the building’s accomplishments in sustainability, from its green roof to its water conservation efforts (includes a stormwater infiltration system). But the building’s most unique sustainable feature is the art on the walls–continuously produced by both faculty and students, and displayed on a rotating basis. Our hotel seeks to create the same community-inspired environment through art exhibits that refresh seasonally.
We are excited to find so many people within the Athens community that share our philosophy about sustainable development as it relates to the arts. From the Athens Design Development group to the Mercury Art Works duo, we are discovering unforeseen opportunities that we cannot wait to realize. The home of Sandi Turner and Chris Wyrick is a good example of what we would like to create within the hotel–a place where the boundary between art gallery and living space blurs:
