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About AMPLIFY
AMPLIFY is an annual creative placemaking project, introduced by the Spruill Gallery in 2020. Each year, Spruill releases a nationwide call for mural designs to decorate the side of the Spruill Smoke House on the Spruill Gallery property at 4681 Ashford Dunwoody Road in Dunwoody, Georgia. The AMPLIFY selection committee reviews this wealth of artist submissions. From this impressive pool, three finalists emerge, with one artist and their public art project chosen as the winner.
These yearly AMPLIFY murals are meant to engage the community through vibrant public art installations and to support working artists and the art economy. Over the years, AMPLIFY has become a symbol of artistic excellence; a testament to the fusion of art, culture, and community; and a beloved Dunwoody landmark.
Call for Submissions
The 2025 call for AMPLIFY is closed. The 2026 call will launch this upcoming summer.
2025 AMPLIFY Winner
A Charm of Buntings by artist Chloe Alexander currently adorns the Spruill Smoke House.
A Charm of Buntings features two indigo buntings in flight against a brightly colored botanical background. The design aims to instill a sense of joy and hope within viewers.
“This composition’s features Indigo Buntings in flight to instill a sense of hope and optimism. Birds are often symbols of freedom, renewal, and possibility, and the movement captured in my proposal suggests resilience and progress, even in the face of challenges. The vibrant color palette and playful background create an atmosphere of joy, which I hope will remind viewers of the beauty that surrounds them in daily life. The organic and botanical motifs represent growth and harmony, as well as the connection between people and their environment. By highlighting these symbols of unity and renewal, the mural communicates of that hope is always present, guiding the community toward a bright future.” – Chloe Alexander
Chloe Alexander is an Atlanta-based printmaker and Georgia State University graduate who has exhibited work nationally and internationally – including in Atlanta, New York, and London. Her work can be found in the Harvard Museums in Cambridge, the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, and in an array of other public and private collections.
Past Winners
2024 AMPLIFY Winner
Rest and Rise, Manty Dey, 2024
Rest and Rise by Atlanta artist Manty Dey was chosen as the fifth annual AMPLIFY mural. This mural takes inspiration from cyclamen flowers, which bloom during the winter months after resting during the summer, serving as a reminder of what Manty calls “the delightful moments that await in the next season.”
Manty Dey is an Atlanta-based visual artist with a BFA in painting and drawing from georgia State University and an MFA from the University of Georgia. She has displayed work across the southeast – including at the Museum of Contemporary Art of Georgia, the Georgia Museum of Art, the Macon Museum of Arts and Sciences, and MINT Gallery – and has been awarded residencies at Vermont Studio Center and the Hambidge Center for Creative Arts and Sciences.
2023 AMPLIFY Winner
Big Hug, Charity Hamidullah, 2023
Big Hug by Charity Hamidullah, chosen as the fourth annual AMPLIFY mural, is meant to remind viewers that they are not alone and inspire acts of kindness. By painting people in different vibrant colors, the artist conveys an image of diverse individuals with different life experiences finding connection and helping one another.
Charity Hamidullah is an Atlanta-based artist whose murals and public art projects can be seen across the city. She has participated in collaborations with organizations like Microsoft, Target, and the City of Atlanta and in 2024 was named “One to Watch” by ArtsATL.
2022 AMPLIFY Winner
Forest for the Trees, Alice Stone Collins, 2022
Forest for the Trees by Alice Stone Collins, chosen as the third annual AMPLIFY mural, aims to spark reflection amongst viewers about environmental protection and preservation.
“While the sunset and brightly colored trees draw you in, they also reflect a synthetic world of our own making that puts in danger the one we know. Unless we are willing to pivot and see the world anew, we will be separated from the natural world that surrounds us,” she wrote.
Alice Stone Collins earned her Bachelor’s of Fine Art from the University of Georgia and her Master’s of Fine Art from the University of Tennessee. Her work has been exhibited across the United States — from Wyoming to New Mexico to Georgia and beyond — and she currently teaches art as an assistant professor at Georgia Gwinnet College.
2021 AMPLIFY Winner
Together We Bloom, Alea Hurst, 2021
Together We Bloom by artist Alea Hurst was the second annual AMPLIFY mural. According to Hurst, “The two figures are personifications of nature and mother earth, blowing color and life out into the world [and] bringing us joy and rebirth. The flowers each have their own symbolism and meaning…. Lilies often represent rebirth and purity, but orange lilies specifically mean confidence and pride. Yellow daisies represent happiness and pride. Pink roses often mean gratitude, grace, and joy. The lotus flower in each the figures’ hands is another representation of rebirth, as well as, purity, enlightenment, and regeneration. The lotus petals blown from each of the figures coalesce in the center of the image to signify unity. I feel that these flowers combine to create a sense of pride and unity in our community.”
Atlanta-based artist Alea Hurst received her Bachelor’s of Fine Arts in Painting and her Bachelor’s of Business Administration from the University of Georgia and her Master of Fine Arts at the Savannah College of Art and Design. She has exhibited work nationally and internationally — including at ABV Gallery, Hartsfield Jackson International Airport, and Callanwolde Fine Arts Center.
2020 AMPLIFY Winner
Find Your Wings, Christopher Michaels, 2020
Find Your Wings by artist Christopher Michaels was the first mural ever to win Spruill’s now-annual AMPLIFY contest. According to Michaels, who lives in Dunwoody alongside his family, Find Your Wings uses lemons and butterflies to represent a transition from difficult to joyous times. “The Southern saying ‘when life gives you lemons’ is an idiom for hard times and misfortune, and butterflies have always been symbolic of metamorphosis and beauty,” he wrote.
The symbols utilized in Find Your Wings also represent the healing journey of Michaels’ wife Amanda, who was struck by a car in April 2019 after attending Dunwoody’s Lemonade Days festival and, several months later, proceeded to take her first steps since the accident at the Dunwoody Nature Center’s annual Butterfly Festival.
Christopher Michaels holds a Bachelor’s of Fine Art in Studio Design from the University of Georgia and, outside of his professional art, has experience working in special effects, graphic design, and web design.
