Tension.

Ponce de Leon Avenue stands today as a physical testimony of a point of tension Atlanta knew well after the Civil War: segregation. This important street once separated two completely different racial and socio-economic demographics; and even though this separation has become blurrier over time, it is still visible in some parts. Intersections such as Boulevard and Monroe Dr serve as reminders of a spatial boundary that once segregated affluent white neighborhoods in the north from lower-income black neighborhoods in the south. The name change of the street speaks for itself.

Tension (of other kinds) are still present today in our city and in our world. Cultural, social, political, racial, religious, artistic, and philosophical tensions between us and others surround our everyday, though unspoken most of the time.

Tension is often seen as a thing to avoid, a thing to hide; yet it is precisely in the synergy created by two opposite forces pulling apart where an opportunity for action can arise. It is in the midst of tension where honest political and social discourse is needed and where art should have a voice. It is in the midst of tension where creative thinking thrives.