By Hannah E. Jones
Through an upcoming project, you can see the Atlanta BeltLine and the neighborhoods it touches through a new perspective.
In early June, a new project will be unveiled along the BeltLine. Entitled “The BeltLine Chronicles,” the 68-page poem will be installed in increments along the urban pathway. The project was created by Robert F. Barsky, an author, professor of humanities and law at Vanderbilt University and current Guggenheim Fellow.
Each installation features two pages of poetry, accompanied by illustrations by Lauren McKee, a former student of Barsky. The plaques also include QR codes that direct users to the website, where folks can read the poem in full and check out more artwork.
The BeltLine Chronicles follows a narrator named George as he discovers Atlanta’s 22-mile loop — reflecting on its history while exploring its present and future. During his adventures, George meets people, discovers hidden gems within the city — like a rock labyrinth on the Southside trail — and learns more about the trail’s overall impact on Atlanta. Barsky describes The BeltLine Chronicles as “a project of social justice viewed through the lens of canonical literary quests.”
Barsky and his wife, Marsha, moved to Atlanta in 2020 and he quickly became fascinated with the BeltLine. In many ways, the loop reminded him of a solo bicycle trek he took years ago across Europe.
On that trip, he needed something to keep him company at night, so he stopped at a bookstore and bought a book of poems by Lord Byron. One piece entitled “Don Juan” resonated with him, as it depicted a European trip similar to the one he was on.
“I [decided to] go to all the places he visits,” Barsky said. “This idea of a pathway, a quest, a search and a crazy objective, is just as much wrapped up with learning the history of where you are, as with traveling somewhere.”
He added: “The Beltline represented, for me, much of what I was searching for in Atlanta. It’s diverse, it breaks down borders, it’s enticing, it’s fun and it’s still in construction. So I was back to the Lord Byron quest — back to bicycling across Europe, but now accompanied by the poet George on a 22-mile loop in Atlanta.”
The concept for The BeltLine Chronicles was derived organically — based solely on Barsky’s growing obsession with the trail. He began hitting the pathway every day, meeting with developers and eventually its creator Ryan Gravel.
He devoured all the research he could get his hands on, including a collection of developer manuals — about a foot-and-a-half high — of studies on the area’s history, local flora and fauna, nearby neighborhoods, funding and more. In total, Barsky did about a year’s worth of research.
“I didn’t realize at the beginning that I was doing research. I think I was just falling in love with the BeltLine and what it represented,” Barsky said. “I started dreaming about it. I’ve become totally obsessed with this project; I think it’s just ridiculously enjoyable as a process.”
The BeltLine Chronicles begins with George at the Atlanta Botanical Garden, where he then walks to Piedmont Park’s Lake Clara Meer and gazes at the water before he “embarks on his voyage.” Along the way, he ponders the history of the areas he’s traversing, admires the plentiful artwork along the path and watches the city’s bustle. At the end of the poem, he returns to where he started in Piedmont Park.
Four sections will be installed by Art on the BeltLine — with the first at the Beltline’s entrance on Monroe and 10th St — and the remaining pieces will be added to the trail in increments. Eventually, Barsky envisions having the full poem displayed throughout the entire 22-mile loop, with each location corresponding to what George is experiencing.
In September, Barsky will also host a public live reading of the poem. Actor Ismail bin Conner was hired to read the social justice sections, accompanied by Kennesaw State University dancers who will improvise their performance.
Once this project wraps, Barsky envisions George exploring other iconic places in Atlanta, like Underground Atlanta, MARTA or local parks. Overall, Barsky describes the project and the BeltLine itself as “in some ways connected to quests for social justice.”
“It’s a history of tearing down fences,” Barsky said. “I think of the BeltLine as a space of urban renewal that helps us break down racial borders [and] class borders that were built very intentionally. [The BeltLine] was also built very intentionally but for another reason. I think of the BeltLine as an accidental pathway that shows us a way of overcoming the fences and borders in our minds, and the fences and the borders in reality. That’s what the Beltline and The Chronicles are about to me.”
Leave a comment