For more than 40 years, Keep Gastonia Beautiful has made it their sole mission to make our City a more beautiful place for us to live, enjoy, and be proud of. They’ve done it by planting trees & flowers; helping to keep our city clean and reminding us to likewise, recognizing homes with enviable yards, helping us to recycle and mulch, decorating our streets and public areas for special occasions; and, perhaps most importantly, teaching our children the value of preserving our environment and natural resources. Over the past 10 years, they’ve added another goal to the list: installing public art throughout our Center City to not only create attractive landmarks but also to inspire and motivate us as we visit the heart of our City.
Explore different art around the City of Gastonia sponsored by both Keep Gastonia Beautiful and a variety of other organizations.
Armstrong Park Mural Location: Armstrong Park Road on the opposite side of 2912 Rousseau Court Location: Gaston County Library Main Branch 1555 E. Garrison Blvd. This was a joint endeavor with Keep Gastonia Beautiful and the Gaston County Library Main Branch Words on the base include: Connect - Read - Discover and learn-dream-imagine-create...all messages that the Library wished to communicate with their patrons. Highland Heritage Mural Location: 913 N. Pryor Street (inside the building) This Word Mural was designed to artistically capture names of current and previous community leaders, names of businesses that had a historical impact on the neighborhood, and names of faith-based and educational institutions that were foundational to the neighbors of the Highland Community. Serenity Location: Corner of Franklin and Trenton at CaroMont Health Park Entrance Gate This project began as a creative way for Keep Gastonia Beautiful to highlight our Bee City USA affiliation by educating the community about the importance of bees and pollinators through public art. As the design developed, inspiration grew from a tour of historic downtown Gastonia. By “looking up” at the unique architectural details along Main Street, the artist wove those elements into the honeycomb design, blending geometry with history. The result is Serenity—a vibrant mosaic column that honors Gastonia’s past while inspiring its future. The piece reflects the rich culture of Main Street and invites citizens and visitors to pause, connect, and spark conversation in the growing downtown landscape. This project also showcases innovation in recycling. NCMosaics, the first U.S. mosaic studio to produce smalti glass from recycled materials, created the glass used in Serenity. In this way, the column not only celebrates pollinators and local heritage but also demonstrates the beauty of transforming “waste” into art. Funding for this project was provided by The Carrie E. and Lena V. Glenn Foundation, with additional support from the Gaston Community Foundation. Proceeds from the annual Community Foundation Run help sustain our commitment to public art in Gastonia.
"What Makes Gaston County Home?" FUSE Mural Project Location: 618 W. Franklin Blvd. - Coca Cola Pad Parking Lot Art was applied using vinyl application to the brick wall. Artists featured from left to right:
Ghillie Dhu’s Enchantment “Tree Spirit” Using a tree as the basis for the design came at the suggestion of the public art selection committee to emphasize trees as a significant part of Gastonia's character and identity. As the artist explored various designs, he became intrigued by the challenge of developing a sculpture that would move in the wind. He had made many mobiles and some smaller kinetic sculptures, but this was the largest outdoor kinetic piece. A part is great location for such a sculpture due to its easy pedestrian access and variety of viewpoints. The design is a very abstract tree form, fabricated in aluminum. The "trunk" and "branches" are gracefully curved and tapered. When at rest, Ghillie Dhu’s Enchantment is a glistening tree-like form. As a breeze sets it’s “branches” in motion, the irregular, gliding movements suggest something magical. The title refers to a guardian spirit of trees in Scottish folklore. The Scottish source is appropriate to Gastonia, since many of the area’s original settlers were Scottish. Discursus “To and Fro” in Latin This City owned lot was approved for utilization for KGB by the Gastonia City Council as a Pocket Park. Discursus is a public art piece to remind us of the pivotal role that the railroads and the textile industry played in our past and how our past intertwines with the present to point us ever upward to our future. Local railroad ties were donated by NC DOT Rail Division. The artist, David felt these local rails would produce the very essence and spirit of this original piece. This piece speaks to the rail industry to transport people and resources from one point to another and also metaphorically for the movement of weaving “back and forth”. Beetopia Mural Inspiration for this mural came from the BEEtopia Zen-Tangle design (a form of meditative doodling that has abstract patterns, or tangles) that had been purchased for Keep Gastonia Beautiful. BEEtopia design is optimal for adaptation to a large, vibrant mural. The following artists generously volunteered their time and talents for this collaborative project: Tiz Johnston, Suzanne Simmons, Lisa Livengood, & Pamela Underwood. “Essence of honey bee and the colorful flight gathering pollen was a natural choice for the color pallet. Nature sustains all life on earth while, at the same time, providing visual beauty for all to enjoy.” – Pamela Underwood, Artist With an unBEElievably generous grant from the Gaston Community Foundation and support by Keep Gastonia Beautiful staff, the artists were able to create this work of art that captures a segment of nature. Bronze Statue Offices for Keep Gastonia Beautiful are located at the Garland Municipal Business Center at 150 S. York Street on the second floor.
Armstrong Park Mural
Commissioned piece by Raman Bhardwaj
Installed Spring 2025
Funded by North Carolina Arts Council, Rotary East Club, City of Gastonia Arts Committee and Keep Gastonia Beautiful
Library Book Art
Commissioned piece by Bob Doster
Installed: June 20, 2024
Highland Heritage Mural
Commissioned piece by Ezekiel Clay, Jr.
Installed: Fall 2023
Serenity
Commissioned piece by Carlos González García
Dedication planned for October 30, 2022
Learn more about this project from start to finish:Join Keep Gastonia Beautiful as you explore why Gastonia is such a "Great Place to Bee!"
FUSE Mural Project
Installed: Fall 2022
Local artists submitted pieces on the theme "What Makes Gaston County Home"
Tom Hauer, Chloe Dabrawolski, Bob Mulholland, Guadalupe Perez-Velazques, Trevor Daigle, Matt Benson, Kaylan Davis, Carla Gamaz-Gutierrez, Kayla Fewell, Aniston Mixon
Ghillie Dhu
Location: Corner of Garrison Blvd and Fern Forest Drive at the Greenway Parking Entrance
Commissioned art piece by Harry McDaniel
Dedicated: 11/9/2010 at the Center City Park location, moved in Fall 2022 to it's current location at Greenway Parking Entrance
Discursus
Location: Heritage Park at the corner of Second Avenue and Marietta Street
Commissioned art piece by David Wilson of Greensboro, NC
Dedicated: 2/23/17
Beetopia Mural
Location: Located within the Gastonia Farmers Market (410 E. Long Avenue)
Installed: Spring 2022
Bronze Statue
Location: Outside of the Gastonia City Hall, 181 S. South Street
Keep Gastonia Beautiful presented this statue to the City of Gastonia in honor of Keep Gastonia Beautiful’s 30th Anniversary on November 1, 2007.
This statue was purchased, and not a commissioned piece.
Contact Information
Garland Municipal Business Center
150 S. York Street, Gastonia, NC 28052
(PO Box 1748, Gastonia, NC 28053-1748)
704-869-1938(business)
704-866-6067 (fax)