E&E Good Story — Gene Kansas

Atlanta’s reason for being is rail.

As a point of convergence for several railroads, the city was born and grew rapidly as a transportation hub. Warehouses were built to take things off and put things on trains. Then, the rail stopped rolling and the BeltLine was announced. (OK, a lot happened between that, but we’re getting to a point.) With this exciting and prospective news, the underlying land value became more valuable than the buildings built there. So, we demolished thousands of old warehouses across the city, and in doing so we removed a whole lot of heart, soul, and character.

Listen, we LOVE Atlanta, but “The city that tore down much of its history” is not exactly a winning Chamber of Commerce slogan, is it?

But in fact, only a handful of old-school intown buildings remain, relatively speaking. On the catalytic side, we’ve got Ponce City Market, the former Sears & Roebuck warehouse; White Provisions, a former meat-packing warehouse; and Krog Street Market, now a great place to grab a burger from Fred’s Meat & Bread.

On the human scale tip we’ve still got Elizabeth & Edgewood.

E&E’s Colorful History

First developed in the early 1900s from forest to a large family home, 990 Edgewood Avenue and 99 Elizabeth Street would become a mini golf course in the 1930s (yes, it’s true!) before the small Federal-style commercial building on the corner was built in 1947. Other post-war industrial structures were built on the property over the years.

A 1932 Sanborn Map depicting a “miniature golf course”

Today, Elizabeth & Edgewood is a fantastically aged urban oasis of offices, workshops, sheds, cement courtyards, vines, magnolias, plants, and at least one roofless warehouse – all zoned for office and studio, or both. It includes peeling paint, rust, and charred wood, and it’s surrounded by nature. And the buildings added over time? We call those The House, The Studio, The Shop, and The Shed.

“It’s a magical place,” says Gene Kansas, a cultural developer focused on history and preservation. “You can’t recreate it unless you go back to the time when this was just a forest, then add an industrial revolution, build warehouses in the 1940s, and then have neighborhood craftsmen, artists, and tradespeople work out of it for seven or eight decades. Which is unlikely.”

In short, it’s a prime example of repurposing a building to serve and inspire the present community.

“We have offices and studios for lease, and we believe there is great cultural value to having this property open to the public as a place to gather, play, work, paint, sculpt, design, film, photograph, and connect,” says Kansas.

Another incredible feature of Elizabeth & Edgewood is the 4,000-sq.-ft., open-air courtyard. Because of its magical quality, it made perfect sense for Drew Perlmutter, Kay Stogner and friends to choose our studio for their wonderchild, Magic Show Tonight!

This is how their incredible project came to be …

Magic Show Tonight!

Kay, a vintage clothing collector who works in costumes and styling on TV and film sets, had recently come upon a rather valuable find in a South Georgia Airstream – the wardrobe used in magician Doug Henning’s 1974 Broadway hit, The Magic Show. It was Henning’s breakout performance with American audiences that earned him a Tony Award nomination.

The colorful, theatrical, sequined wardrobe included “capes, jumpsuits, even a wizard’s hat,” Kay says. She and Drew, a photographer, wanted to honor the find by recreating Henning’s magic show, complete with performers, smoke, mirrors, and a levitating motorcycle. But they needed a space to perform – and document – the making of magic.

“We saw Drew’s work on IG and from his website,” Gene says. “We were really impressed by his playfulness and thoughtfulness. It’s a great combination. So, we had a coffee with him at Chrome Yellow, showed him Elizabeth & Edgewood, and – voila – magic.”

“I didn't think anything like Elizabeth & Edgewood existed in this area until I saw it,” Drew says. “There's endless possibilities.”

The Magic Show Tonight! shoot took 12 hours. It included a forklift, a motorcycle, kismet, a glass box (among many other props), plus actors and models, set designers and assistants and heavy lifters … and of course, all of those groovy outfits.

You can see the remarkable results in this video, co-directed by Drew and Kay, and with cinematography by Christian Wetzel.

A Vision Realized

“It was just, I think, pure art,” Drew says. “That was one of the most exciting things about it. We had this opportunity to create – just to create. The photos turned out incredible.”

Now playing: Drew and Kay are putting together a coffee-table book from Magic Show Tonight! Check it out.

Gene says it’s a new act for Elizabeth & Edgewood, a place that’s been serving the neighborhood for over a century.

“Elizabeth & Edgewood is a platform for creative work that helps others realize their vision,” Gene says. “And Kay and Drew did exactly that.”