Rio Shopping Center

to know me is to know my obsession with the rio shopping center, 1989-2001. this incredible post-modern landscape was located where today’s walgreens-publix shopping center sits at piedmont and north ave in atlanta. the rio landscape was designed by martha schwartz. it connected to the street with a view of a geodesic dome(originally proposed to be covered in kudzu), surrounded by a grid of gold painted concrete garden frogs that sit atop a reflection pool, black and white cat walks, and a pioneer video wall by darra birnbaum.

its my mission to find and perhaps have one of the gold frogs. i found an old atlanta business chronicle article where jeff fuqua promises the gold frogs aren’t going away. i’ve traced their journey and for the most part its unknown. did they go to a storage unit and not get picked up?