Autoeater

New Midtown sculpture turns heads

By Collin Kelley

The new sculpture that replaced the Rockspinner at the intersection of Peachtree and 10th streets in the heart of Midtown has many folks scratching their heads. Some ideas from social media: a car in a condom, a space slug from “Star Wars,” the graboid from the monster movie “Tremors” and a thoughtful meditation on the city’s traffic.

The 16-ton Carrara marble sculpture, “Autoeater,” depicts a Fiat Panda being devoured by some kind of worm-like shape. According to media release by the Midtown Alliance, the sculpture “invites comment on Atlanta’s relationship with the automobile in the context of one of the city’s most walkable urban districts.”

Members of Midtown Alliance’s public art committee helped review the proposals and selected the “Autoeater,” created by German artists Venske & Spänle. The artists began collaborating in 1991, and have developed a reputation for their enigmatic marble sculptures, which have been shown in museums, galleries, art fairs and public art projects worldwide on five continents. In Atlanta, they are represented by Marcia Wood Gallery.

The piece was shipped to Midtown from a marble quarry in northern Italy, near Tuscany. The marble comes from the same quarry that was a meeting place for major artists from the 50s and 60s such as Henry Moore, Hans Arp, Joan Miro, and, notably, Isamo Noguchi, the artist who designed the modernist playscape in Piedmont Park in 1976.

The smooth marble form of the base is juxtaposed with the machine-made body of the Fiat Panda, a popular mass-produced Italian automobile from the 1980s. The Panda was designed as a cheap, easy to operate, no-frills utility vehicle for city driving. The three-door model, with a two-cylinder engine, epitomized practicality. Driving a Panda was part of an alternative lifestyle in the youth of the artists, according to the media release.

The sculpture will be on display for three years.

Read This!

2017 Books All Georgians Should Read revealed

Georgia Center for the Book has selected the works of prize-winning authors and illustrators with Georgia connections for the 2017 lists of the “Books All Georgians Should Read” and “Books All Young Georgians Should Read.”

The authors and illustrators will be honored on Thursday, Aug. 17, at a free, public event at 7:30 p.m. in the Decatur Library Auditorium, 215 Sycamore Street in downtown Decatur.

“The lists are a wonderful way to honor the extraordinary talent we have here in Georgia,” said Joe Davich, executive director for Georgia Center for the Book. “The lists give us the opportunity to inform readers across our state about the contributions to Georgia’s literary heritage, and a platform to celebrate the diverse body of work produced by Georgians.”

The new list of “Books All Georgians Should Read” includes three works of fiction, four of non-fiction, a cookbook, and two collection of poetry. The list of “Books All Young Georgians Should Read” includes three picture books, one Early Reader Book, one book for middle school readers, three books for young adults and two graphic novels. Both 2017 lists are the result of months of discussions by the Advisory Council, which considered over 80 books by Georgians, or about Georgia.

2017 BOOKS ALL GEORGIANS SHOULD READ

● Lisa Hodgens, editor—A Lillian Smith Reader

● Jonathan Rabb—Among the Living: A Novel

● Patrick Phillips—Blood at the Root: A Racial Cleansing in America

● Ted Geltner—Blood, Bone and Marrow: A Biography of Harry Crews

● Thomas Mullen—Darktown: A Novel

● Theresa Davis—Drowned: A Mermaid’s Manifesto

● Judson Mitcham; Michael David Murphy; Karen L. Paty—Inspired Georgia

● Asha Gomez—My Two Souths: Blending the Flavors of India into a Southern Kitchen

● Taylor Brown—A River of Kings: A Novel

● Melissa Fay Greene—The Underdogs

2017 BOOKS ALL YOUNG GEORGIANS SHOULD READ

● Tonya Bolden—Crossing Ebenezer Creek

● Eleanor Davis; Drew Weing—Flop to the Top

● Jaye Robin Brown—Georgia Peaches and Other Forbidden Fruit

● Steve Nedvidek; Ed Crowell; Jack Lowe; J. Moses Nester, Illustrator; S.J. Miller, Illustrator—The Jekyll Island Chronicles, Volume 1: A Machine Age War

● Rep. John Lewis; Andrew Aydin; Nate Powell—March, Volume 3

● Laurel Snyder—Orphan Island

● Thomas Gonzalez, Illustrator—Seven and a half Tons of Steel

● Acree Graham Macam; Natalie Nelson, Illustrator—The King of Birds

● Marie Marquardt—The Radius of Us

● Carmen Agra Deedy—The Rooster Who Would Not Be

Your family’s most comprehensive online guide to arts and cultural entertainment Visit AtlantaPlanIt.org for more upcoming events.

Visual Arts

Salon Style: TEW Galleries shows buyers how to group several works of art together to give spaces a more ecclectic, individual looks in it’s summer exhibit. Closes Aug. 19. Free. tewgalleries.com

Piedmont Park Arts Festival: More than 250 art vendors flood Piedmont Park for this annual festival that also includes artist demonstrations, live acoustic music, a street market, children’s play area plus festival foods and beverages with healthy alternatives. Aug. 19 and 20. Free. affps.com

Threads of Time: Tradition and Change in Indigenous American Textiles: The Michael C. Carlos Museum at Emory University hosts a new exhibit that showcases the staggering breadth and depth of indigenous American fiber arts ranging from weavings in cotton and camelid hair, to feather work and items made from plant. Opens Aug. 17. Free to $8. carlos.emory.edu

Expanding Roots Exhibition: In this body of oil paintings on view at the Decatur Arts Alliance Gallery, artist Shannon Willow created “Talking Trees” to remind viewers to stand rooted in the practice of self-care and authenticity. Closes Aug. 26. Free. decaturartsalliance.org

Anne Morgan’s War: American Women Rebuilding France, 1917–1924: Atlanta History Center showcases photographs and rare silent film footage that bring to life the extraordinary work undertaken by 350 American women – all volunteers – who left comfortable lives in the United States to devote themselves to humanitarian aid in France during the Great War. Daily. Free to $16.50. atlantahistorycenter.com

Ebola: People + Public Health + Political Will: This exhibition at the David J. Sencer CDC Museum is an investigation of the historic 2014-16 Ebola Fever Virus epidemic in West Africa, the United States, and around the world. Monday through Friday. Free. cdc.gov/museum

Jim Henson’s Labyrinth: Journey to Goblin City: In celebration of the 30th anniversary of Jim Henson’s fantastical film Labyrinth, Center for Puppetry Arts invites guests to journey into the magical world of the Goblin King with its immersive special exhibit. Tuesday through Sunday. Free to $10.50. puppet.org

Painter and Poet: The Wonderful World of Ashley Bryan: This exhibition at the High Museum of Art showcases the breadth and depth of Ashley Bryan’s creative output, from the dynamic figure drawings he made while serving as a soldier in World War II, to his first published book in 1967, to his 2016 book Freedom Over Me. Tuesday through Sunday. Free to $14.50. high.org of Contemporary Art of Georgia, Lauri Stallings offers a show and meditation on choreography at the intersection of what is social, political, timely and sincere, and the moving artists of glo will occupy the space daily during the exhibit. Tuesday through Saturday. $5 to $8. mocaga.org

Performing Arts

Nickelback: See Nickelback in concert with Daughtry and Shaman’s Harvest at Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre. Aug. 2. $25 to $125. vzwamp.com

BET Presents Celebration Of Gospel: Hosted by comedian and actor Jonathan Slocumb, the Gospel music extravaganza will include performances from award winning and chart-topping performers from Gospel and R&B at the Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre. Aug. 4. $46.50 to $86.50. cobbenergycentre.com

Graceland Presents Elvis: Live in Concert: As Graceland prepares to mark the milestone 40th anniversary of Elvis’ passing this August, it has announced the U.S. debut of “Elvis: Live in Concert,” an all-new concert production featuring Elvis Presley on the big screen accompanied by a live orchestra, coming to 12 cities, including Chastain Park Amphitheater, this August. Aug. 17. $45 to $258. classicchastain.com

Little Shop of Horrors: Don’t miss Actor’s Express’ horrifically hilarious take on one of the longest-running musicals in offBroadway history in which budding botanist Seymour Krelbourn discovers a new species of plant that he thinks will bring him unending fame and fortune but turns out to be a bloodthirsty carnivore bent on world domination. Closes Aug. 20. $21 to $45. actors-express.com

Mammoths and Mastodons: Joust with mammoth tusks, touch the teeth of the colossal mastodon, and feel mammoth fur between your fingertips in this exhibit at Fernbank Museum of Natural History. Closes Aug. 27. Free to $18. fernbankmuseum.org

Rwandan Reconciliation: Four Rwandan artists whose lives were impacted by the violence of 1994 present their most recent, vibrantly colorful paintings that joyfully celebrate the rebirth of Rwandan culture in this exhibit at Oglethorpe University Museum of Art. Tuesday through Sunday. Free to $5. museum.oglethorpe.edu the room for tender choreographies: For her solo exhibition at the Museum

Coca-Cola Summer Film Festival: See all eight films in the Harry Potter series on the Fox Theatre’s big screen over the course of three days. Aug. 5 through 13. $12.50 per film. foxtheatre.org

3 Doors Down: Hailing from the small town of Escatawpa, Mississippi, 3 Doors Down hit their peak in the 2000s with a string of post-grunge singles, most notably “Kryptonite,” “When I’m Gone,” and the ballad “Here Without You.” See them at the Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre. Aug. 11. $33 to $66.50. cobbenergycentre.com

An American

In Paris: An American in Paris presented at Atlanta’s Fox Theatre is the new hit musical about an American solider, a mysterious French girl and an indomitable European city, each yearning for a new beginning in the aftermath of war. Aug. 15 through 20. $30 to $125. foxtheatre.or

Mother Goose: Humpty Dumpty, Little Bo Peep, Jack & Jill and all the other citizens of Rhymeville need as much help as possible to look for clues and solve the mystery of Mother Goose’s whereabouts in this show at Center for Puppetry Arts. Opens Aug. 15. $19.50. puppet.org

Joe Rogan: Visit the Tabernacle to see Joe Rogan, a standup comedian for over 20 years with an inquisitive and intense comedic style, who is host of The Joe Rogan Experience, a comedy podcast on iTunes. Aug. 25. $39.50 to $65. tabernacleatl.com

Yacht Rock Revival: The Yacht Rock Revue calls itself the greatest show on surf and the finest tribute to ‘70s light rock to ever perform anywhere, including this show at The Tabernacle. Aug. 26. $35 to $40. tabernacleatl.com

Blackberry Daze: In Horizon Theatre’s play it is the end of The Great War and a small Virginia town is rocked by secrets and seduction as Herman Camm, a provocative gambler, weaves his magic on the lives of three unsuspecting women. Closes Aug. 27. $25 to $35. horizontheatre.com

Glengarry Glen Ross: Pinch ‘n’ Ouch Theatre’s show depicts cutthroat real estate salesmen trying to grind out a living by pushing plots of land on reluctant buyers in a never-ending scramble for their share of the American dream. Thursday through Saturday. $20 to $30. pnotheatre.org

The Taming of the Shrew: The wild and unwed Katherine is thrown together with the boisterous and charismatic bachelor Petruchio and thus begins Shakespeare’s fiercest and most controversial battle of the sexes in this play at New American Shakespeare Tavern. Opens Aug. 26. $15 to $39. shakespearetavern.com