Public Art in Rockbridge County

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Monuments, Murals & Painted Horses

Public art in Rockbridge County is inspirational, historic, and sometimes wacky. Horsemania & LOVEworks Life-size fiberglass horses, brightly painted by local artists, are fun to spot in the wild around the county. The horses are part of Horsemania, a fundraising effort to support CASA child services. You’ll find horses outside of Devils Backbone Outpost Tap Room & Kitchen on Route 11 and Coiner Country Store in Buena Vista. There’s another one inside the visitor center at Natural Bridge State Park. Natural Bridge State Park also displays one of the state's iconic LOVEwork pieces, which give a nod to the “Virginia is for Lovers” tourism slogan and Virginia’s natural beauty. The piece was designed by local artist Mark Cline. His creative fiberglass creations – King Kong, a dragon, and a wizard – are also displayed on Route 11 just north of the state park in front of Dinosaur Kingdom II.  Two 40ft-high sculptures – the Twin Towers in miniature – were installed by Cline beside the double-pavilion at Glen Maury Park in Buena Vista on the 20th anniversary of 9/11. This exhibit is temporary. A second LOVEwork mural adorns the east wall of JJ’s Meat Shak (1607 Magnolia Ave), also in Buena Vista. Look for the cow, the chicken and the big red pig.  Murals The bright LOVEwork painting at JJ’s Meat Shak is one of a half-dozen or so murals in Buena Vista, which is a stop on the <a href="https://www.muraltrail.com/cgi-bin/virginia/buena-vista-community-murals/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Appalachian Mural Trail</a>. At the junction of 21st and Magnolia Street look for two murals: the Greetings from Buena Vista postcard (2077 Magnolia Ave) and the inspiring Reaching Ever Upwards (21st St alley), which is framed by the handprints of local kids. A pretty floral display and a mural spotlighting local outdoor adventures brighten the wall of Flowers & Things at Sycamore Lane (2255 Beech Ave) beside Don Tequila. A painting of the region's agricultural bounty fills the back wall of the Eagle's Nest Clubhouse (101 W 29th St), and local mountains are given a modern interpretation on the grounds of Southern Virginia University (2745 Walnut Ave). Old-school ads for Coca Cola and Genuine Bull Durham adorn the brick walls of the Edward Jones building on 21st Street beside the railroad tracks. A mural on the back of the flood wall depicts a historic bateau making its way upriver. Look for it from the lower tent area at Glen Maury Park or from the River Walk a short walk south of W 10th St. Lexington murals include the Millinery De Rousselot sign on the south-facing wall of Pumpkinseeds at the corner of Main and Washington Streets. It was created in 1992 for a scene in the movie Sommersby, a drama starring Jodie Foster and Richard Gere. The story took place in the years following the Civil War, and downtown Lexington looked much unchanged from the 1860s during filming! There is also a sunrise mural under the Nelson St Bridge. Boxerwood Another hotspot for art is Boxerwood, a nature center and woodland garden near downtown Lexington. Whimsical creations dot the kid friendly Fairy Forest while a giant chair and a mischievous troll await in the back field, which is framed by mountain views.  College Campuses The post at VMI is home to more than two-dozen monuments and memorials. Most border the parade grounds. Near the barracks, look for the 1856 bronze recasting of Jean-Antoine’s Hudon’s marble statue of George Washington. The original is in the rotunda of the Virginia state capitol. Walk down the adjacent steps to the Memorial Gardens, which are the home of the marble statue Spirit of Youth by Attilio Piccirilli. The Piccirilli brothers carved the marble statue of Abraham Lincoln in the Lincoln Memorial In Washington, DC.  Noteworthy sculptures at W&L include the Cyrus McCormick statue on the front lawn. McCormick, the inventor of the mechanical reaper, was a major donor to the college during Robert E. Lee’s presidency. The large bell on Stemmons Plaza announced the start of classes from the cupola of Washington Hall for several decades beginning in 1890. The elegant Eclipse sculpture near Davis Hall commemorates Kelsey Durkin of the class of 2014.

Devils Backbone Brewing Company - Outpost Tap Room & Kitchen

Devils Backbone Outpost Tap Room & Kitchen is located on a beautiful hillside in Lexington. It’s home to a custom-built brewery, bottling canning lines, a taproom with fast-casual dining, and an outdoor beer garden. Reservations preferred, especially for patio domes. Reserve online.

Coiner Country Store

Open for business! Formerly known as The Amish Cupboard, we are located in downtown Buena Vista, Virginia.

Dinosaur Kingdom II

Created by nationally known attraction builder and theme park designer Mark Cline, whose work has been featured on The Discovery, Travel and Smithsonian Channels as well as on FOX, TBS and BBC Networks. Enter into a time tunnel and discover Stonewall Jackson battling a vicious spinosaurus! Get surrounded by deadly meat eaters! See Abe Lincoln after he’s lassoed a pteranodon chewing up the Gettysburg address! Witness a stegosaurus being milked! If you like prehistoric creatures and civil war history, you’ll flip out over Dinosaur Kingdom II!

JJ's Meat Shak

At JJs we take pride in our Southern, home-cooked meals and in smoking all of our meats in house, and making all of our sides from scratch! Our goal is to create the ultimate dining experience and family oriented atmosphere without the pressure of fancy dinning! With 50’s music playing in the background while you eat, and the taste of our fresh seafood or smoked meats in your mouth, you will be planning your next trip to JJs. Check the website for the latest updates about delivery service.

Flowers & Things at Sycamore Lane

In business for 20 years! Floral designs featured in Virginia Bridal magazine! Bridal consultants with over 40 years experience on staff to make your wedding day "Your Special Day!"

Glen Maury Park

From hiking, biking, and paddling to camping, swimming, and birdwatching, there’s a lot going on at Glen Maury Park, a pretty 315-acre park and campground hugging the Maury River in the forested foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains.

Glen Maury Park is Buena Vista’s 315-acre playground, providing wooded trails, an Olympic-sized pool, two campgrounds, as well as several pavilions where residents and tourists alike make the natural choice for enjoying life. Glen Maury Park hosts a variety of events each year – music from old time to classical, beach music to bluegrass, and gospel to rock n’roll. Around town you’ll find eateries and service businesses ready to provide what you need… all close at hand.

Millinery De Rousselot Mural

The Millinery De Rousselot mural at the corner of Main and Washington Streets is a holdover from the movie Sommersby, filmed here in the summer of 1992. This Civil War-era love story starred Jodie Foster, Richard Gere, and Lexington’s very own Main Street.

Boxerwood Nature Center & Woodland Garden

Boxerwood Education Association operates a community-based, non-profit nature center in Lexington, Virginia that provides a treasured 15 acre woodland garden, open to the public, and delivers unique, life-changing environmental educational programs to people of all ages, including students in the entire local public school system.

Virginia Military Institute

Founded in 1839, Virginia Military Institute (VMI) is the oldest state-supported military college in the United States. Throughout its storied history, VMI has produced leaders and individuals whose daily lives reflect the integrity, fairness, and appreciation for the value of hard work that is instilled at the Institute. For the individual who wants an undergraduate experience more complete and transformative than an ordinary college or university can provide and more versatile in its applications than a military service academy affords, VMI offers a superb education.

Washington and Lee University

Washington and Lee University in Lexington, Virginia, is a nationally ranked, small, private, liberal arts university nestled in the mountains of western Virginia. As one of the oldest schools in the nation, we believe in the education of the whole person, and value students who are intellectually curious, eager to engage with their communities, inclined to critical thinking and prepared to lead lives of consequence.