Murals and Public Art
Experience art and murals in Downtown Travelers Rest! Snap and share selfies, tagging us on our social media platforms with #ArtinTR. Read more about the backstory of each mural below as you explore the artwork and immerse yourself in our small town.
Where Travelers Come to Rest
Mural Artist: Adam Schrimmer, Blank Canvas Mural Co.
Start the day admiring this laidback mural which says it all – Travelers Rest is your basecamp and a great place to rest after a long hike!
The World is What You Make it!
Artist: Sunny Mullarkey
327 S. Main St., Travelers Rest
Hey Y’all, Welcome to Travelers Rest
Mural Artist: Adam Schrimmer, Blank Canvas Mural Co.
Look closely and you’ll see the remarkable people and historical events that made us who we are today – a community-minded, small town with genuine folks who truly love our city and appreciate a good adventure. Represented in this mural are:
– Coach Chico Bolin – the OG of the Devil Dogs
– A nod to all locals who have military service
– Browns Feed & Seed Store
– Williams Hardware / Nancy & Joyce McCarrell
– TR Historical Society / Spring Park Inn
– TR Early Elementary School House
– TR Main St. Gazebo
– Pop Kramer, our famous unicyclist
A Town as Charming as Its Name
315 S Main St.
Mural Artists: Jesse and Carissa Bowser
This mural, located next to Verb Beauty Studio brings in all the fun and quirky elements that make our city so great! The art is fashioned after a town map created by the husband/wife artist team, Jessie & Carissa Bowser is a popular stop for selfies.
The Locomotive with a Pizza Oven/Cowcatcher
109 S Main St
Mural Artist: Brigitte Selby
The inspiration behind the mural at the Whistle Stop Cafe was a train since the City was once a stopover for travelers on their way to the mountains. When imagining the design, the artist looked at the wall and wanted to incorporate the recently added pizza oven in the restaurant. She envisioned a train with the pizza oven as the cowcatcher (the device mounted at the front of the locomotive to deflect obstacles).
Do What You Love!
3 S Main St. On the trail behind Makers Co.
Mural Artist: Adam Schrimmer, Blank Canvas Mural Co.
Poppies adorn this mural inspired by the creative owner of TR Makers Co., Kristen LaRoy.
Spokes Art Project
13 S Main St
Artist: Elizabeth Kinney
Artist, Elizabeth Kinney created this mural as a homage to our bike-friendly City. Dedicated to our love of cycling in the Upstate, this mural is part of a series of murals found throughout the region aptly named, Spokes.
I Carry Your Heart
Mural Artist: Adam Schrimmer, Blank Canvas Mural Co.
106 S. Main St
Inspired by a quote from E.E. Cummings, this mural features a vintage European poster-like scene of a female cyclist with flowers in her bike basket, a hare and Paris Mountain in the background.
Swamp Rabbit Brewery
26 S Main St
Mural Artist: Brigitte Selby
Selby’s first mural in Travelers Rest, painted on the Swamp Rabbit Brewery and Taproom, shows a Swamp Rabbit, jumping through a beer barrel on the gray brick wall of the brewery. At any moment, the larger-than-life creature looks as if it might scamper into the traffic on Main Street.
Springtime in TR!
26 S Main St
Artists: Emily Clanton & Furman University students
Ross McClain, art department chair at Furman University, decided to offer a course in community art. Enlisting help from the Travelers Rest Artist Alliance, and engaging the community through an art competition, the artwork of Emily Clanton was chosen. The image represents TR in late spring/early summer. It’s a creative reimagining where Paris Mountain, the Swamp Rabbit Trail, and a basket full of vegetables call to mind the Travelers Rest Farmers Market and the farm-fresh produce used by many local restaurants.
A Nod to Sunrift Gorge
1 Center Street
Artist: Caroline East Harnish
This mural was inspired by the business owners love of Sunrift Gorge in Glacier National Park. At the owners request, native plants & flowers found in the Upstate were incorporated in the landscape. The artist drew her inspiration from native plants books that belonged to the owner. Look carefully at this mural to see how many native plants and flowers you can identify.
Music in the Park
235 Trailblazer Drive
Artist: Elizabeth Kinney
This mural is a nod to the City’s love for music! Located in Trailblazer Park, next to the park’s outdoor amphitheater which hosts the City’s Music in the Park series in May, June & September, the mural hearkens back to pickers playing traditional Appalachian tunes.
Storm Drain Murals
Working with the Greenville County Soil and Water Conservation District, the City transformed three storm drains located in the Trailblazer Park Complex into public works of art. The painted storm drains are an important educational tool to address stormwater pollution and the common misconception that our storm drains lead to sewer treatment facilities. In reality, anything that enters a storm drain goes directly into the nearest river, lake, or stream without being treated.
Drains to the Reedy 1
235 Trailblazer Drive
Artist: Elizabeth Kinney
Drains to the Reedy 2
235 Trailblazer Drive
Artist: Oliva Felber
Please Keep Water Ways Clean
235 Trailblazer Drive
Artist: Lily Foster
Public Art Installations
Husband/wife artist team, Jeff & Goda Sumerel produce temporary art installations along Main Street throughout the year. Each themed installation is chosen to recognize the City’s appreciation of nature, art, and sense of fun and adventure.
TR Bunny Bushes
Each March, adorable bunnies pop up from the bushes that line Main Street. This annual installation gives locals and visitors the perfect opportunity to get out and take selfies to share with friends and family.
Social Butterflies
In early April, lovely butterflies grace Downtown Travelers Rest to welcome Spring! This popular educational installation includes QR codes that link visitors to interesting facts butterflies.
TR Means the World to Us
This week-long installation coincides with Earth Day to celebrate our love for our beautiful environment. Educational facts about the environment and conservation are displayed along Main Street and a city-wide, community clean-up takes place.
Scarecrows on Main
Come to the Downtown Travelers Rest and see something spectacular! Scarecrows will be popping up in the Gazebo, and in front of shops and restaurants throughout town to celebrate the fall season. From late September through Halloween the Scarecrows on Main competition takes place and visitors can vote for their favorite in participating shops and restaurants in town.
TR Goes Batty
Every October, a colony of bats fly through Travelers Rest. QR codes posted next to each bat link visitors to educational “Bat Fun Facts”. TR Goes Batty is a project created in partnership with Heritage Elementary art students. While you’re in town, swing by Sunrift Adventures to learn about their Annual Bat Count, a yearly event to bring bat conservation to the forefront, and see how many bats you can count as they fly out of bat houses and.