Howard Finster’s Paradise Gardens in Chattooga County, Ga., has been named to a preservation group’s “Places in Peril” list.

The Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation included the late folk artist’s 4-acre property on its fifth annual list, released today.

In a statement, the group says the list aims to raise awareness about Georgia’s significant historic, archaeological and cultural resources that are threatened by demolition, neglect, lack of maintenance, inappropriate development or insensitive public policy.

Finster’s gardens, packed with folk art items like a 20-foot statue made of bicycle frames and his famous paintings of Coca-Cola bottles, has been featured on “The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson” and in music videos and cover art for REM and other groups.

Other sites on the list include: Central State Hospital in Milledgeville; Morris Brown College in Atlanta; Canton Grammar School in Cherokee County; Leake archaeological site in Cartersville; Dorchester Academy in Midway; Old Dodge County Jail in Eastman; Ritz Theatre in Thomaston; Herndon Plaza in Atlanta; and, Capricorn Recording Studio in Macon.

See Thursday’s Times Free Press for complete coverage.