When MetLife and Granite Properties kicked off a mixed-use project near Atlanta's cultural epicenter in late 2019, developer John Robbins knew they'd need to find a way to connect with surrounding art museums.
The development team made that connection through a local artist who's also an architect and poet. Granite, based in Plano, Texas, and MetLife, with its headquarters in New York, commissioned artist Joe Dreher, who goes by @JoeKingATL on Instagram, to paint murals on the sides of two parking decks at their Midtown Union mixed-use project centered on 17th Street in Atlanta.
Midtown Union, expected to open in the fourth quarter, is to include a 26-story office tower, an 18-story residential building, a 230-room Kimpton hotel and 32,000 square feet of retail space.
Earlier this month, Dreher started painting a mural on the North Garage at 17th and West Peachtree streets. He plans to paint single-line drawings of four faces and a Mobius strip infinite loop that symbolizes unity and infinity to position Midtown Union as a place that unites people, the development team said.
"It also celebrates love, as the faces in the murals are of the artist’s family," the team said.
Dreher also painted a portrait on the parking deck below Midtown Union's multifamily tower on the Arts Center Way extension, Robbins said. Midtown Union is steps from the High Museum of Art and Woodruff Arts Center.
"It adds a connectivity with the Woodruff Arts Center," Robbins said in an interview. "We are trying to align ourselves with the arts community and activate large spaces to enhance the overall Midtown experience."
The first mural Dreher painted at Midtown Union, a static image on a wall, appears to move as you walk past, Robbins said.
"As you're walking down the street, the image changes for you, and you see several faces. The mural comes alive as you are passing by."
Dreher said he's been working toward such large-scale projects: "I started doing volunteer work nine years ago assisting other artists, and now I am painting large murals on what might be one of the coolest buildings in the city," he said in an email.
He said his first apartment and his first architecture job were in Midtown, so he feels a connection with the area.
"My career as an architect definitely helps me in the planning and logistics of a large project like this," Dreher said.
"When I was a kid visiting the Empire State Building with my parents I asked, 'How can they build a building like this, so big, so many parts and pieces?' my Dad would say, 'One brick at a time and the hard work and commitment of many people who together are able to make something bigger than themselves.'"