While our trip to Nashville was interrupted by Hurricane Helene passing through (we just got heavy rains), we were still able to get some walking and outside time in. On our first day, we did our one and only mural tour, because it was the only day it was nice enough to do it when we had the time.
Luckily, there was plenty of art everywhere we went, so we saw it walking around and driving down the street. It always pays off to look up at buildings and down alleyways, because you are usually rewarded with some lovely things.
We headed to the 12South neighborhood and walked around with the help of a guide I found online that gave us some of the best murals to check out. This area of town was a bit upscale, had a lot of great shops, a farmers' market, and a variety of art on buildings. I'd love to go back and explore the neighborhood some more.
If you are looking for an interesting place to eat, both The Nashville Farmers' Market and Assembly Food Hall have international food vendors and both have art in and outside.
Street murals are not the only way to indulge in free art, though. In fact, right when you get off the plane at BNA, there is art in the airport, but once you leave, you can also hit up The Gulch neighborhood, the downtown area, or even the Tennessee State Museum for free art of all kinds.
The Tennessee State Museum has a "time tunnel", telling you all about how the state was formed, the indigenous people, the land itself, and then the history of the state through the Civil War, WWI and WWII, Women's Suffrage, the Civil Rights movement, and later, all through exhibits and artifacts.
You then have two rotating exhibits. Right now, it's Tennessee Furniture and Tennessee Playlist (a quick history of Tennessee's music). We had some free time on our last day and decided to go back to see these two exhibits and eat at the Nashville Farmers' Market before we had to get to the airport.
You can easily spend an afternoon here, especially if it's a cold or rainy day. There's quite a lot to see.
Even dogs have art in Nashville. We walked past this amazing little dog park that had this huge mural and was super clean. Not only that, but there were some fun training items in there as well, so you could teach your dog some agility while they're getting some socialization in.
By now, you know that most cities have free art if you are willing to look for it. I'd love to take a guided walking tour if/when we make it back to Nashville, so I can, hopefully, learn more about the street artists in the city.
What are some of your favorite places for free art?
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