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Tag: Castleberry Hill

  • ‘The Scenic Route’ arrives at Nina Baldwin Gallery

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    Above: Golden Time Of Day, Acrylic. Photo by Noah Washington/The Atlanta Voice

    Artist and curator Courtney Brooks returns to the gallery wall with The Scenic Route, a solo exhibition opening Friday, Dec. 12, at Nina Baldwin Gallery in Atlanta’s Castleberry Hill arts district. The exhibition, which runs through Jan. 7, marks Brooks’ first solo show since 2018 and serves as the gallery’s final exhibition of the 2025 calendar year.

    The Scenic Route brings together photography, abstract acrylic paintings, and immersive installation work to chronicle Brooks’ personal, spiritual, and emotional journey. The show features approximately 26 works, the majority of which are photographic, created across multiple cities and during various travel moments. Each piece reflects Brooks’s approach to both art and life, one that favors reflection, patience, and attentiveness over shortcuts. “I wanted to showcase my journey through travel, my spiritual journey,” Brooks said. “I feel like I take the scenic route all the time. I don’t try to shortcut anything. I’m really paying attention to detail, and I want that to show throughout my work”.

    Above: Tears of Joy & Pain, acrylic. Photo by Noah Washington/The Atlanta Voice

    Several works invite viewers to participate directly in the creative process. Among them is This Crown, an installation that continues Brooks’ ongoing series This Crown Belongs to Us, centered on Black womanhood, care, and collective identity. The piece features a sculptural hairstyle that will evolve throughout the exhibition. Brooks describes the work as another iteration of her long-running exploration of Black girlhood and shared ownership.

    “It’s another iteration of This Crown Belongs to Us, part of my journey as a Black girl,” Brooks said.

    Another interactive work, Tears of Joy and Pain, allows visitors to add symbolic elements to a communal painting over the course of the show. The piece reflects the emotional duality that runs throughout the exhibition, joy intertwined with grief, hope alongside loss. Brooks said the work is rooted in her own experiences over the past several years, including the death of her mother. “There’s a lot of tears and joy that I poured into this work,” she said. “Everything I’ve personally experienced pushed me to keep showing up, for my students, for other artists, and ultimately to show who I am”.

    Faith and trust serve as recurring undercurrents across the exhibition. A small abstract work titled God’s Plan speaks directly to Brooks’ spiritual grounding during periods of uncertainty and grief. Other pieces focus on intimacy and longing, including I Made This Type of Love By Me, a nighttime photograph of a couple seated together in Cartagena, Colombia. Brooks said the image reflects both the comfort of unconditional love and a quiet yearning for romantic connection.

    Atlanta’s social and historical landscape also appears in the work. In Northbound, Southbound, Brooks employs abstraction and photography to reference MARTA and the racialized limitations inherent in the region’s transit system. The piece contrasts Black and white forms to highlight how segregation and infrastructure once restricted movement and access across neighborhoods.

    Nina Baldwin Gallery, a women-curated space, traditionally opens exhibitions on the second Friday of each month in conjunction with Castleberry Hill’s Art Stroll. Brooks said closing out the year with a solo show felt especially meaningful. “It was time,” she said. “It was time to share my work”.

    The Scenic Route opens Dec. 12 from 7 to 11 p.m. at Nina Baldwin Gallery and will remain on view through Jan. 7.

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    Noah Washington

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  • New charter school to open in SW Atlanta aiming to close achievement and wealth gap

    New charter school to open in SW Atlanta aiming to close achievement and wealth gap

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    Movement School, a network of free public charter schools, recently gained state approval to operate in Georgia. With schools already open in North Carolina and South Carolina, Movement School CEO Kerri-Ann Thomas chose Southwest Atlanta to introduce their brand to the local school system.

    According to Thomas, Movement School’s journey to opening in Georgia was challenging. Despite numerous setbacks, including initial denials at local and state levels, the school persevered.

    “We’ve been trying to enter the Georgia region for over two years. Our determination to the families and community outweighed the challenges,” Thomas said.

    Movement School currently serves pre-K through fifth grade. Thomas highlighted the school’s focus on early childhood education and its comprehensive multi-county transportation service as standout features.

    “There are lots of [charter] schools that don’t have the ability to provide transportation for students. The fact that we are a charter school approved by the state allows us to accept students from multiple counties,” Thomas said. “We go after the pre-K experience because the achievement gap actually starts at age three. Our goal is to become experts in that area.”

    Movement School is also connected to Movement Mortgage. In partnership with the school, Movement Mortgage offers down payment assistance to eligible parents and staff to promote home ownership to close the wealth gap.

    “The mortgage company has a philanthropic spirit, donating to the school because closing the achievement gap is a great cause,” Thomas said.

    Thomas, a Spelman College graduate and a small business owner in Castleberry Hill, said she was drawn to Movement School because it values community partnerships.

    “Lots of schools use [corporations] for lunch services. At Movement, we partner with a local restaurant that reflects the population we serve,” Thomas said. “This approach enriches the students’ experience and supports local businesses, creating a positive economic impact.”

    Regarding inclusivity, Thomas explained that Movement School honors its commitment to every student by delivering a robust special education program.

    “At all Movement Schools, we accept all students, and ‘all’ truly means all. Even within our first opening year, we have a special education coordinator,” Thomas said. “So, we provide resources, even at a more senior leadership level in that department. That’s additional funding going toward that population of students.”

    Thomas said Movement School shows resilience in navigating political challenges, particularly around curriculum content. She shared their strategy to ensure the school delivers an inclusive and accurate education.

    “We believe our children deserve to see books reflecting their experiences. Thomas said the texts and books placed before them are vetted [for] accuracy, especially with history. “There should be a diversity of books, ideas, and accuracy of information. [In] the written document of how our charter will be run, we spell out the curriculum we use.”

    Looking ahead, Movement School is set to open at 1950 Sullivan Rd. in August 2025—a milestone that Thomas said her team eagerly anticipates—with a mission to provide high-quality education, foster community partnerships, and promote inclusivity.

    “We provide that partnership element, and what that then does is create a tide of success within that overall community, Thomas said. “We’re not becoming like this conglomerate trying to take over and do everything. Instead, we’re partnering.”

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    Lentheus Chaney

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