Atlanta Artist Paints Suburban Ennui

Today's suburbs have discarded the human-scaled patterns they once promised. This newly resurfaced series of paintings from Atlanta artist Meg Aubrey will leave you longing for the world we neglected to build.

1 minute read

April 16, 2013, 1:00 PM PDT

By Hazel Borys


"Taking shots at the suburbs is like playing bass in a garage band: Easy to do, but hard to do well. After all, their original intent — an idyllic melding of town and country, with all the advantages of both — implied a tranquil, family-friendly promise that, over time, has proven notoriously unfulfilled. Surely that’s a subject worthy of more than just another McMansion joke," says Scott Doyon.

"The last time I considered this issue I was writing about Arcade Fire’s “The Suburbs,” a poignant reflection from someone raised there now confronting the reality of mourning its loss. Not, as I said then, in a nostalgic way that denies the suburbs’ ultimate failings but in a way that honors their original goal: creating a place where people could live, thrive and be happy."

"Today I turn from ear to eye candy with artist Meg Aubrey’s recently resurfaced I Just Live Hereseries, now on display in the T-Concourse of Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport as part of its contemporary Atlanta artists program."

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