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Constellations

Think historic boutique hotel, but a work space.

By Luke Beard

May 30^th, 2018

Sweets sounds of Auburn Avenue

Before we get into the story let's talk about Atlanta's historic Sweet Auburn neighborhood where Constellations resides.

Sweet Auburn is a historically African-American area, very closely associated with the Civil Rights movement. It's quite something to wander along the avenue and experience so much history that is not only punctuated by The Martin Luther King Jr. Historic Site but also murals of significant civil rights leaders at almost every turn.

"Designated a National Historic Landmark in 1976, Sweet Auburn is a prime example of the flourishing segregated neighborhoods founded by African Americans during the Jim Crow era in the South. The neighborhood was home to countless businesses, congregations, and social organizations, and was the birthplace of Martin Luther King, Jr. The house in which he was born still stands at 501 Auburn Avenue."

— National Trust for Historic Preservation (A Constellations resident)

Come to Atlanta, see Sweet Auburn.

Ok, onto Constellations.

Constellations

Gene Kansas

To talk about Constellations is to talk about it's founder and creator Gene Kansas. Cultural developer and preservation forward real estate hero of Atlanta.

I originally met Gene via Travis Elmark of Office of Brothers, the team behind the amazing brand and story of the space. We instantly connected over my new found goal of being more civic minded, storytelling, tacos and my ever increasing love for Atlanta. Originally from New Orleans but a resident for over 20 years. Gene is a wealth of stories about the city.

We are collaborating on some very interesting projects around the history and evolution of Atlanta in near future.

Gene and his team think of the space as not only a building with offices for people to work in but an environment to share and preserve knowledge.

"At Constellations, we strive to deliver an ecosystem that honors the world-renowned history of Sweet Auburn, while providing a relaxed, professional environment for thinkers, writers, foundations, non-profits, purpose-driven companies, historians, students, educators, advocates, and lovers of life — to live their dreams and fulfill their missions."

Gene in his Office.

Work in progress

I met Gene a couple months before Constellations opened so got to take my favorite kind of photos, the process! Here is a retrospective of the space coming to life.

Constellations

Constellations

Constellations

1910

Occupying the top floor of The Southern Schoolbook Building at 135 Auburn Avenue, the space is a recipient of the 2009 Atlanta UDC Award of Excellence for Historic Preservation. It's really a stunning example of early 20th Century architecture. Constructed in 1910, the building was designed by Hentz & Reid as the Southern School Book Depository. The legend that is Neel Reid, who joined Hal Hentz one year earlier, worked incredibly hard on the project, detailing ornate garland swags across the top, majestically centered with the torch of knowledge and an open book.

As an added bonus it's also located directly above the APEX Museum, a true asset to the cultural fabric of the Sweet Auburn community, dedicated to exploring the African-American Panoramic Experience.

Constellations

Constellations

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Welcome in gold leaf

The space officially opened May 8th to some awesome local press including a great Curbed article and almost all the field offices are now occupied!

I was super stoked to provide the photos assets for launch day that included all the photos in this story.

Constellations

Welcome to Constellations

Boutique hotel details

One thing that is extremely clear is that Constellations is not a copy and paste space. It's more of boutique hotel that is so respectful to it's environment that is feels almost to well designed. Come by for some cookies, they show up twice a day. 🍪 From the light fixtures, to the gold leaf signage to the vintage mailboxes. It's all very considered.

Constellations

Constellations

Constellations

A studio down the hall

One of the most amazing details of Constellations is that there is a full featured podcast studio available to all residents. The Constellations team record a community update every week no less.

The first guest to grace the studio? Elridge W. McMillan! Formally the Southern Education Foundation president who worked in same space that Constellations now occupies for over twenty years. Stay tuned for an awesome podcast episode about his amazing backstory.

Constellations

Constellations

Constellations

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The residents

A diverse set of companies doing fascinating things.

The National Trust for Historic Preservation, Atlanta Field Office;
Georgia Tech’s Ivan Allen College, administering a Residency Program Office in Social Justice;
Georgia State University’s Honors College, and its Residency in Social Entrepreneurship;
Spacelab, a design and research popup concept from Atlanta-based architecture and design firm tvsdesign;
GivingPoint, which empowers youth to take action for social good;
Visual artist and scholar Fahamu Pecou;
Civil Bikes, leading historic bike tours around Atlanta;
Mavenly + Co., which is dedicated to helping women build better careers and lives;
Cognitive Design, a boutique architecture firm specializing in the complex relationships between people and place.

Kate Gremillion & Tallia Deljou of Mavenly at Constellations

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Constellations

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Gene and Ted Bradford, Director of Operations

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Office 001

You might wonder why I'm so enthusiastic about Constellations. Apart from being an amazing endeavor it also happens to be the first ever Exposure office. Exposure has always been a remote company so I'm thrilled to call Constellations the first dedicated home and that it's right here in Atlanta.

It's already been an exciting year for Exposure with tons of great features shipped and an ever expanding community of story tellers publishing amazing stuff. It feels great to now have a home base that is situated in such a historic area.

Want to swing by the space and grab a coffee at the Milk Way coffee bar? Drop me an email luke@exposure.co.

Constellations

"Where the stars align"

Constellations

135 Auburn Ave.

Constellations

Learn more

www.constellations.community

Constellations

© 2026 Luke Beard

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