Manhattan Cafe in Athens prominently displays a unique piece of vintage Highwaymen art

The first thing visitors notice about Manhattan Cafe in Athens is its grunge. And that’s not an insult. The marquee above the entrance dates back to the 1940s, as does the name of the North Hull Street bar. Regulars describe Manhattan Cafe as a “time capsule,” which comes down to owner Joey Tatum and his collection of vintage art displayed on the walls. In one such vintage painting, a visage of Jesus guides a truck driver through a storm. He points toward a white cumulus cloud and a slice of sky peeking out from behind it. Jesus promises safety for the trucker in his travels. For new patrons of Manhattan Cafe, this curious painting often stops people in their tracks, as they ask, “What’s that?” Jesus guiding a trucker painting at Manhattan Cafe in Athens. (Photo by Ansley Kelly) Before Tatum ever owned a bar (he also owns Little Kings Shuffle Club around the corner), he worked as a fisheries technician in Port Wentworth, Georgia. In the mornings, he would always grab a biscuit from a roadside spot on the way to work. “There was just a cinderblock shack, but it has that picture on the wall. Not that [exact] one. And I was like, ‘That is so cool.'” he said. Eventually, Tatum found a similar painting of Jesus guiding a truck driver at the J & J Flea Market on Commerce Road. In fact, most of Manhattan Cafe’s art pieces are secondhand finds. Another such painting hangs on a partition at Little Kings Shuffle Club on West Hancock Avenue. One day, Tatum arrived at Manhattan Cafe to find the coveted painting he loves so much missing. He found out later that an employee had taken it for the day to make t-shirts for the bar. Tatum now sells the t-shirt at Manhattan Cafe. The t-shirts of Jesus guiding a trucker. (Photo by Ansley Kelly) A little art history The painting at Manhattan Cafe is an example of Highwaymen art, a late 20th-century, African American artist movement known for quick roadside paintings and accessible pricepoints. According to the National Museum of African American History and Culture, artists painted most of their pieces from memory. Tatum recalls encountering one such artist as a child. “When I was a kid, at some filling stations, there’d be a guy in the parking lot. He’d be painting really fast [and] have a whole bunch of paintings lined up.” Tatum said of what first sparked his fascination with Highwaymen art. Collectors like Tatum now seek out these Highwaymen pieces, such as the Jesus and the trucker painting given pride of place at Manhattan Cafe. A signed original Highwaymen painting can retail anywhere from a few hundred dollars to a few thousand dollars at auction. Want the backstory behind a piece of art, a peculiar curiosity, or a novelty knick-knack at a local bar or restaurant? Email Sarra Sedghi at [email protected] with suggestions.