Ecology at the margins: quantifying environmental motifs in public art along the Atlanta Beltline Eastside Trail

Urban greenways frequently deploy public art to frame place identity, yet little is known about how such art represents ecological themes. This research analyzes that gap with a field-based audit of approximately 800 artworks along the 2.25‑mile long Atlanta Beltline Eastside Trail. It included coding style, dominant color, human depiction, and environmental motifs. These data were extracted in quantitative forms to generate descriptive statistics which show that only 13% of artwork contain environmental content. Within this subset, plants are most common, and water motifs are rare. Graffiti and street art account for the clear majority of works, which is a media mix that skews for the design and governance of linear parks, including commissioning brief onward typography and portraiture rather than nature imagery. Human figures are primarily adults and disproportionately white; overt political messaging is infrequent. Based on our results, we recommend a need for ecology‑oriented artwork and interpretive devices (labels/QR links) that connect artworks to local ecologies. These patterns suggest an opportunity to support broader ecological awareness within these communities as climate conditions continue to change.