Nearly a century after SEE ROCK CITY barns captured travelers' attention, Rock City is inspiring a new journey through 14 artist-created installations across the region.
Inspired by the iconic roadside campaign that helped put Rock City and Chattanooga on the map, these large-scale works of art invite locals and visitors to rediscover area attractions through a self-guided regional road trip.
The project was brought to life through creative collaboration. Rather than replicating the famous three words synonymous with the barns, each installation reinterprets the slogan through the lens of its host locations. For example, at Sculpture Fields the piece reads SEE A WORK OF ART. Chattanooga Theatre Center proclaims SEE THEATRE COME ALIVE, and the Tennessee Aquarium displays SEE LIFE UNDERWATER.
Created by a team of carpenters, fabricators and 10 local and regional artists, the installations range from large-scale barn structures and elevated birdhouses to interactive photo ops. Inside Rock City is a signature work by Southern contemporary folk artist Butch Anthony, and 500 mini birdhouses painted by students from Walker County hanging in the Hearth Pavilion. Altogether, these pieces offer a unique sightseeing adventure through the summer, with select installations remaining on view even longer.
"These installations give new life to a beloved piece of Americana, inviting people to experience familiar places through the creativity and imagination of local artists," said Pepper Raper, Rock City’s publicist and project manager for Barns2Birdhouses.
Rock City barn painting started in the 1930s to encourage travelers to visit the off-the-beaten-path attraction. Clark Byers, the original sign painter, was hired by Rock City founder Garnet Carter when he was just 22 years old. Byers spent more than three decades painting around 900 barns across 19 states. Barn painting finally came to an end with the passing of the Highway Beautification Act in 1965, but has been revived through Barns2Birdhouses, as part of Rock City’s celebration of America 250.
To learn more about the barns, artists and locations of each piece, visit seerockcity.com/barns2birdhouses