Look Around
Outdoor public art is everywhere
The Statue of Liberty. Venus di Milo. Abraham Lincoln, pensive in his chair. These are but a few of the statuary that draw millions each year—spectators moved by human figures crafted from metal and stone.
The earliest known sculptures are over 40,000 years old and served to remind new generations of a shared history. Today, public art in Tallahassee shares this same impulse. There are nearly 200 pieces of art installed for public viewing around Tallahassee, and today, through a collaboration with the Council on Culture & Arts (COCA), the Knight Foundation, and the Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA), colorful new murals have been cropping up on the sides of buildings and walls. Let’s view a few of the most impactful outdoor figures and images right here in the Capital City.
Circle of Chains
Union Bank Museum lawn
219 Apalachee Parkway
The newest sculpture on this list, completed in April 2025, looks back at times of shame and sorrow. Circle of Chains is a six-figure bronze grouping of adult and child slaves bound in metal to each other, each bearing burdens, and one fallen to the ground. Renowned sculptor Steven Whyte brings a breathtaking reality to the somber scene. It is placed across the street from the State Capitol and next to the Union Bank, the former Freedman’s Bank, where emancipated slaves were first able to deposit their money.
Photo courtesy of COCA
A Walk in Time
R.A. Gray Building
500 South Bronough Street
One of the most ambitious sculpture projects located in Tallahassee is the Indian Heritage Tableau,
A Walk in Time, constructed between 2005-2007. Situated on the grounds of the R.A. Gray Building, it consists of three groups: the Miccosukee tribe, the Seminole tribe, and the Florida Indian tribe. In each, adults in traditional clothing lead children along a trail, presumably having been displaced from their ancestral homes in Florida. These life-sized bronze sculptures were created by father and son, Bradley Cooley and Bradley Cooley Jr.
Photo courtesy of COCA
Jake Gaither
Jake Gaither Stadium
1500 Wahnish Way
On the campus of Florida A&M University (FAMU) stands the larger-than-life-size figure of former head football coach Jake Gaither. The piece was crafted in 2002-2003 by former FAMU art professor Chester Williams and features busts of other notable coaches circling the primary figure. Williams originally added just two busts, but in 2022, local bronze sculptor Bradley Cooley added additional faces of beloved coaches to the “team.”
Photo courtesy of COCA
Fallen Florida Firefighters
Florida State Capitol Plaza
400 South Monroe Street
Local sculptor Michael Jernigan has created an elevated, three-figure memorial to honor Florida’s fallen firefighters as well as a second fallen officer sculpture in polished bronze. Both works stand in the Florida State Capitol plaza courtyard. There are 181 engraved names of officers lost, honoring their sacrifice and legacy.
Photo courtesy of COCA
Enchanter
Montgomery Hall, FSU campus
130 Collegiate Loop
Tallahassee native Sandy Proctor has more than a dozen of his sculptures on display across the city. One of these, completed in 2017, sits at the rear of Montgomery Hall, the home of Florida State University’s school of dance. Enchanter portrays a bronze ballet dancer leaping into the air, muscles taut, power emanating in the arc of his jump. Here, the subject is joy and movement, an artistic culture shared across campus.
Photo by Saige Roberts
SoMo Walls
Various Artworks
1327 South Monroe Street
Warrior on the River
The Legacy at the Riverfront
9330 West Tennessee Street
City Walk Urban Mission Thrift Store Murals
Untitled Wall Mural
1105 North Monroe Street
SoMo (South Monroe) Walls is a 2-D expression of public art that plans to invite many muralists to participate on their newly completed development on South Monroe. Meanwhile, artists like Kollet Probst have long covered walls with brilliant colors that bring old edifices back to life. Her Warrior on the River murals and installation on the side of the City Walk Urban Mission thrift store bring a vibrant, joyous spirit to these otherwise unassuming buildings.
