GAEA Conference Fall 2024

catlanta: Learn about the free art movement through a presentation about Catlanta kittens and the #fafatl community. After the presentation, participants will create a kitten of their own to take home or hide for others to find. Catlanta aka Rory Hawkins, is an Atlanta based artist primarily known for his colorful and fun paintings of cats. Though he was born in New Orleans, Rory has been a lifelong resident of the metro Atlanta area. Rory attended Georgia State University as a Berner Scholarship recipient where he received a B.A. in Studio Art in 2010 primarily focusing on printmaking during his studies. Since graduation, Rory has produced hundreds of paintings under the moniker ‘Catlanta’, a name that grew from a few cats Rory spray painted on the walls of underpasses and abandoned properties throughout the city of Atlanta in 2011. The cats, three-legged with dots for eyes and hearts on their chests, quickly became known as an Atlanta street art character popping up all over town. Not interested in being labeled a vandal and inspired by nondestructive art movements like Free Art Friday, Rory transitioned from painting cats on walls to creating small hand painted wooden cutouts of his iconic three-legged cat (called kittens) which he hides around town for anyone to find. Rory shares photo clues of the piece’s location and invites his followers to track down and keep any kitten that they can find. Since he began hiding art pieces in 2011, Rory has shared over 1,000 pieces of art via photo scavenger hunt. These ‘art drops’ are meant to highlight the people, places, and events that make Atlanta and other cities unique while inspiring exploration and engagement within the community where the artwork is hidden.

In addition to painting and hiding cats, Rory is an accomplished muralist with large outdoor works in Atlanta, Chattanooga, and Costa Rica. He has worked with several local and national brands on a variety of projects from label designs to chalkboard art and has volunteered with organizations like One Love Generation and Paint Love to lead art workshops for Atlanta area students. He lives in Ormewood Park, and enjoys evening walks around his neighborhood, Atlanta sports teams (not you, Cobb Braves), and taking hot baths.