Nearly 500,000 people call the city of Atlanta Georgia home. Considering that every home must have at least one door, that’s a lot of doors! In striking contrast, there are less than two dozen miniature doors sprinkled throughout Atlanta’s neighborhoods. The miniature doors, art installations by Karen Anderson Singer aka Tiny Doors ATL, are one-twelfth scale (1:12) resulting in tiny doors that are about 7 inches high. How does this tiny collection of tiny doors even get noticed in the big city of Atlanta?
The Tiny Doors ATL website provides a partial answer to that question. The Tiny Doors are designed to be interactive and engage their audience. Tiny Doors ATL “painted the hashtag #TinyDoorsATL by [their first door in 2014] hoping people would upload photos to social media as a way to document not only the door itself, but also a visitor’s response to the door.” With over 110K Instagram followers, it’s apparent the strategy was a good one.
Recently, I set aside a day to visit Atlanta and view as many Tiny Doors ATL installations as I could. I used the Tiny Doors ATL map to plan my route in advance and I’m really glad I did. There are no signs directing visitors to the Tiny Doors so locating them is a bit of a challenge. As it turns out, actually finding a Tiny Door is part of the fun!
Today’s blog post includes an overview of the six Tiny Doors I was able to visit along with a few tips for finding them.
Tiny Door ATL’s first door was installed in July 2014 at the Krog Street Tunnel. This vehicle/pedestrian tunnel crosses under a series of railway tracks to connect the neighborhoods of Inman Park and Cabbagetown. Krog Street Tunnel is a wildly popular destination for artists and art lovers. It boasts an ever-changing display of graffiti street art.
Tiny Doors ATL explains, “We selected the tunnel for Door #1 for a few reasons. First, Krog is an active street art location and we hoped this project would be one other artists would respond to in some way. Second, our tiny headquarters is in Reynoldstown and we love seeing this door evolve every day.”
The Krog Street Tunnel Tiny Door is ever-changing and rather challenging to locate. It is located on the exterior corner at the tunnel’s southeast pedestrian entrance near the intersection of Krog St NE and Wylie St SE. Here’s how it looked in February 2022.
The below photo provides a closer look at Tiny Door #1 – Krog St Tunnel with a small printed sign I made to help convey its size. The sign is 3”x 4” which is approximately the same size as the screen on my iPhone.
The Atlanta neighborhood of Grant Park is known for its Craftsman bungalows and Victorian mansions. Its namesake park, encompassing 131 acres, is the oldest surviving city park in Atlanta. It is home to the Atlanta zoo and two Tiny Doors.
Tiny Door 10W is located, at ground level, on a concrete post located in front of Milledge Fountain on Cherokee Ave SE.
The Tiny Door’s Craftsman style architectural details, including the transom, dentil molding, and muted colors, are consistent with the houses in Grant Park. The sunburst-shaped house number sign is a charming, distinctive feature of this neighborhood.
Tiny Doors ATL strives to design doors that “reflect the spirit, architecture, and other unique elements of the surrounding community.” Tiny Door #10W in Grant Park certainly accomplished this goal!
The second door in Grant Park, Tiny Door #10E, was the most difficult to find. It is located, at ground level, in a tree along the Grant Park Trail near Fort Walker. It is on the right side of the trail when walking up the hill. It’s easy to miss, though, because it’s hidden behind the tree’s roots and only visible when looking back down the hill.
Tiny Door #10E – Grant Park Tree is the only door that opens but, when I visited, the actual door was missing. Perhaps that’s why someone posted a park ranger in the doorway! This is a great example of the interactivity Tiny Doors ATL encourages with its art.
Tiny Doors ATL explains that all the other Tiny Doors are deliberately left closed to encourage a sense of wonder. A visitor is invited to imagine for themselves what might be behind a Tiny Door. They deliberately avoid using labels like “fairy, pixie, sprite, gnome, or troll” for the same reason.
The Tiny Doors in Grant Park were requested by the neighborhood’s residents. Organizations, such as the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, have also requested Tiny Doors. Tiny Door #18 is located, to the left of the main entrance of Symphony Hall, at the Woodruff Arts Center at 1280 Peachtree St NE.
The piano key-inspired mural makes a striking background for this Tiny Door. Tiny Doors ATL notes “The door is also higher than most, so that it’s easy to reach for folks in fancy symphony outfits and wheelchair accessible.”
The newest Tiny Door was installed in December 2021 at the Atlanta Botanical Garden. It is located at waist-level in the vine arbor, on the right side of the Great Lawn, as you walk towards the Dorothy Chapman Fuqua Conservatory.
This is the only Tiny Door that is two-sided; the front and back are identical.
Tiny Doors ATL notes “The hand sculpting on this tiny door makes it one of the most intricate so far.” The details on this Tiny Door are indeed amazing—a large magnolia blossom graces the arch above the door…
… floral bouquets adorn the door panels, door pulls add style and the tiny sign even follows the Garden’s branding.
This was the only Tiny Door I viewed which isn’t numbered. Tiny Doors ATL follows a specific naming convention—only doors that are free to visit and accessible to people of all ages are assigned a number. Doors such as this one at the Atlanta Botanical Garden are assigned only descriptive names. Other examples include the Aquarium Door at the Georgia Aquarium and the Swan House Door at the Atlanta History Center. Tiny Doors ATL maintains a listing and map of all the Tiny Doors on their website.
I visited one more Tiny Door—although it wasn’t tiny! Door #658 is known as the Giant Door. It can be found at an apartment and condo complex called “EDGE on the Beltline” which is located at 670 DeKalb Ave NE.
Door #658 is 658 times the size of the other Tiny Doors. Here’s a side-by-side comparison using my 3”x 4” signs for reference.
Looking back, I’m struck by the variety of the six Tiny Doors I visited. Each one is a delightful reflection of its surroundings resulting in the perfect sampling of Atlanta neighborhoods.
More Info
Tiny Doors ATL has installed Tiny Doors throughout the city of Atlanta, Georgia, USA. To learn more, check out the Tiny Doors ATL website and Instagram account. These are the best sources for up-to-date information.
I hope the directional tips and photos in today’s post are helpful. The information is current as of February 2022.
If you’re interested in miniatures, you may also like the FanningSparks’ post, Miniature Garden in a Closed Terrarium – DIY Tutorial.
Today’s Takeaways
1. Consider visiting Tiny Doors ATL art installations in Atlanta Georgia.
2. Tiny Doors ATL invites viewers to interact with its installations physically and virtually.
3. Each Tiny Doors ATL installation reflects its surroundings and connects with its sponsoring community.
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