American visual artist Greg Mike has spent 15 years travelling the globe, painting murals and working as a creative director. Now, he’s doubling down on his home city of Atlanta, having opened his colossal ABV Gallery, studio and event space—a move that will bring the world to Atlanta’s doorstep.

The creative complex occupies the former Holy Temple Deliverance Church in East Atlanta Village and has been transformed over a three-year period in collaboration with Kronberg Urbanists + Architects and Bayard Builders. The team has reimagined the 1980s church for its new role, retaining its ecclesiastical silhouette—now drenched in matte black—igniting curiosity from passersby, with ABV’s graphic moniker proudly announcing its new purpose.

Spanning 8,500 sq ft, the gallery, art studio, and event space are over three times the size of ABV’s previous location in Old Fourth Ward. It signals Mike’s ambitions for his gallery and agency, which now features over 500 artists worldwide.

The complex will host a series of events and experiences featuring artists from both the local community and the international scene, and its design reflects this multifaceted use. The church’s former sanctuary has been converted into a bright, white-cube gallery space with glossy concrete floors and clerestory windows that draw in soft, natural light. Meanwhile, former offices, choir rooms, and ancillary spaces once used by the congregation have been converted into studio space for ABV’s creative agencies and Mike himself, with the larger space allowing him to produce works on a much larger scale.

‘This space is more than just a gallery—it’s a place where artists and the community can connect, create, and thrive,’ says Mike.

His show, Chapter New, which runs until 20 October 2024, inaugurates the space and is his first solo exhibition in over a decade, drawing on 15 years of creative expression. New and unreleased paintings are displayed alongside sculptures, limited edition prints, vinyl figures, and apparel, all created in his signature ‘surrealist pop’ style.

‘Through the years, my work has grown, always pushing myself to explore new ideas and mediums,’ he says, ‘In this exhibition, you’ll see this reflected in every piece of the collection—through a mix of traditional and digital art, the introduction of new materials, and the reimagining of signature characters. I wanted to capture the feeling of starting fresh while honouring the elements that have always been central to my work. It’s a balance between the familiar and the unknown, a continuation of my story with a twist.’

Future exhibitions will draw on ABV’s global roster, which includes the likes of JEKS, and Thomas Turner and works by Aesek, Monica Alexander, Ryan Adams, Catlanta, Helen Choi, Ghostbeard, and more.

Explore ABV Gallery + Creative Agency in the gallery above.

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