Four Atlanta Women Paint Massive Wall Mural in Midtown Atlanta

ATLANTA -- On Friday, the first day of summer and Summer Solstice, Colony Square in Midtown will debut a a 2,915-square-foot mural painted by four local women. Aurora is a massive art display symbolizes hope, transcendence and the coming of a new day. Colony Square will hold a free sunrise meditation class taught by a local yoga studio owner on June 21 along Peachtree Street.

Led by Dancing Dogs Yoga owner Shelley Lowther, the Summer Solstice experience at Colony Square will begin at 6 am in the front loop along Peachtree Street with a self-healing practice for guests. At 6:45 am, the ritual will conclude with a special ceremony to welcome the dawn. In addition, guests are encouraged to bring an item that represents themselves to place at Aurora’s feet, bringing luck and warding off the darkness.

“The summer solstice signifies the longest day of the year, a time when the Earth is full of strength, fertility and abundance. It represents cleansing, renewal, love and reflection on the growth of the season,” said Lowther.

Upon check-in, attendees will receive a citrine stone, said to bring abundance, to help channel their energy throughout the meditation practice. The first 10 guests to arrive at Colony Square will receive a complimentary palm reading from Handful of Stars. Attendees will also have the opportunity to purchase a palm reading following the event. In addition, guests are encouraged to experience the grand opening of Starbuck’s new Colony Square location in Building 100.

“Aurora tends the landscape space between her sister Luna, the moon, and her brother Sol, the sun. She represents the magic time between waking and dreaming, nighttime and morning, when our imaginations are most open and alive, “said Lauren Stumberg, curator of the all-female artist team. “Aurora embodies the power to bridge two worlds: one of darkness and one of light. With this mural, we celebrate her as a symbol of hope, transcendence, and the coming of a new day.”

Colony Square partnered with an all-female team of four local artists known for creating Persephone, a massive 90’ x 90’ foot mural at Edge on the Beltline, North American Properties’ mixed-use community along the Atlanta BeltLine. Located on the north wall of 5Church facing Peachtree Street, the mural depicts Aurora in the moment she’s waking up, while the landscape around her is still rich and dark.

Aurora was created by:

• Molly Rose Freeman, a multimedia artist best known for her large-scale murals and installations that feature organic patterns, gestural geometry and vibrant colors;
• Lela Brunet Raymond, a visual artist whose main subject is the female form and the contrast created when the grace of the figure and the tension of energetic patterns and colors collide together;
• Laura Vela, a Chicana multimedia and interdisciplinary artist whose work often explores identity and gender; and
• Lauren Pallotta Stumberg, a muralist, painter and arts advocate whose work honors the human experience through abstracted portraiture and symbolism.