project overview

raleigh markers | raleigh

Artist: Khara Woods

Total budget:  $50,000 (including artist fee and finalist honoraria $500 each)

Upcoming benchmark/update: Schematic Design


BACKGROUND

About Raleigh :

Raleigh is a historic community located in the northern section of Memphis, Tennessee. Once an incorporated city, Raleigh served as the first county seat of Shelby County from 1824 to 1866. It was named by Joseph Graham, the county's first circuit clerk, who came from the Raleigh, North Carolina area. In 1912, the town surrendered its charter and returned to unincorporated status, becoming part of the growing Memphis metropolitan area.

The evolution of Raleigh reflects the broader story of Memphis: growth, transition, and renewal. As Memphis expanded, Raleigh gradually transformed from a political and civic hub into a diverse, residential neighborhood with a strong retail economy. The community's historical role as a center of local governance remains a point of pride, even as its identity has shifted over time.

Raleigh is bordered by Frayser to the west (with the Canadian National Railway tracks marking the line), Bartlett to the east, the Wolf River and I-40 to the south, and the Memphis city limits to the north. This location places Raleigh at a geographic and cultural crossroads—connected to major commercial corridors, yet grounded in neighborhood identity.

Historic Blanket of Raleigh

Retail is the primary industry in Raleigh today. Two major roads—Covington Pike and Austin Peay Highway—serve as commercial spines, converging at a busy intersection anchored by Methodist North Hospital and a Walmart Supercenter. National companies such as Nike and Amazon also operate facilities nearby, contributing to the economic landscape.

Covington Pike, especially its southern section, is known for its dense concentration of auto dealerships and related services. Stage Road offers a mix of fast food and casual dining, shopping centers, and big-box retailers like Home Depot. Austin Peay Highway mirrors this development pattern, with grocery stores, eateries, and the former Raleigh Springs Mall site—a focal point of Raleigh’s community revitalization.

In 2016, the City of Memphis purchased the defunct Raleigh Springs Mall to create the Raleigh Springs Civic Center—a transformative project that now includes a public library, police precinct, traffic and special operations center, and a public skatepark. This space has become a new civic heart for the community, offering a gathering place and symbolizing Raleigh’s continued reinvention.

For more information, the selection committee encourages you to visit:  

SCOPE OF WORK

The selection committee has expressed interest in a large-scale gateway marker that:

  • Highlight the environmentally conscious and sustainable concepts and abstract themes of concepts

  • Reflect the activities and experience of the community, including its function as a flexible community gathering space and hub for the exchange of business and education

  • Reference the history of Raleigh, but also focus of the future of this community that values families, children, entrepreneurship and growth

  • Consider existing nearby public art and the design of the new facilities


SELECTION COMMITTEE

Cameron Johnson-

Nakia Carrial -

 Jasmine Moore-

Larry Bean - City of Memphis Engineering

- Artist

About Artist-

Khara Woods

Khara Woods is a multidisciplinary artist and graphic designer based in Memphis, TN. Her studio practice includes abstract geometric paintings, wood assemblage, and public art projects, including murals and community engagement initiatives.

Her work has recently been exhibited at Sheet Cake Gallery and Crosstown Arts in Memphis, Red 225 Gallery in Nashville, the Hilliard Art Museum at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, and the Beverly + Sam Ross Gallery at Christian Brothers University in Memphis.

Since 2015, Woods has created murals and public art for numerous organizations, including the Memphis Public Library’s Cornelia Crenshaw branch (2017) and the City of Memphis’ Office of Comprehensive Planning (2023). In 2019, she was commissioned by Mural Arts Philadelphia to design a large-scale data visualization mural for Uptown Memphis as part of their Arts & Environment Initiative.

In 2025, she will debut her first solo exhibition in Augusta, GA, opening April 4th at Westobou, and is currently developing a large-scale outdoor installation for the Memphis Brooks Museum of Art, set to open in mid-April.