Route 95 Murals

Designed by Pawtucket artist Gretchen Dow Simpson, these austere murals were commissioned by Governor Lincoln Chafee’s Beautification Program. Visible on the retaining walls along I-95 between Exists 28 and 29, the murals depict the empty interior of a Cottage Street mill. Both a reminder of glory days past and a quiet ode to future prosperity, the highly graphic, light-focused mural epitomizes Simpson’s signature style and her fascination with New England architecture.

Famous as the most prolific New Yorker cover artist of all time, Simpson attributes her early success to advice she received from Lee Lorenz, art director of the prestigious magazine from 1973 to 1993. Noticing that the inherent strength of Simpson’s work was the articulation of mysterious and abstract spaces within the representational, he told her simply, “Paint what you like.” Living in her small New York studio, she quickly realized that what gave her pleasure was the imagery of New England, especially as it related to interiors, with hints of the exterior world encroaching on those spaces. Simpson’s image-making process began as a part of her involvement in the New York art scene. She recalls for an article in New England Home, “I got a job as a tour guide at the New England pavilion of the 1964 World’s Fair in New York, but no one wanted to be told what to look at. I got so bored I started taking pictures of the booths and sold them to the managers there.” Thus, the world of photography opened, allowing Simpson to compile a visual archive of classic New England interiors and exteriors as she traveled up and down the eastern seaboard. From these images, she would make her paintings, probing the architectural soul of her beloved home region. Holding a BFA from the Rhode Island School of Design and an Honorary Doctorate from Bryant University, Simpson remains an active member of the Pawtucket arts community, sitting on the board of the Pawtucket Arts Collaborative and as an elected council member for RISCA. She also maintains a regular painting practice at her Pawtucket studio. In completing the murals, Simpson worked with Johan Bjurman and Munir D. Mohammed, who transferred and painted her original design.

Johan Bjurman comes to mural painting with over 35 years of artistic experience. He has worked in art historical restoration and conservation for 15 years and founded the Bjurman Studio, through which he has specialized in trompe l’oeil mural and decorative work for over 30 years.

Munir D. Mohammed received his BFA from Ghanatta College of Art and his MFA from the Rhode Island School of Design. He has worked in Ghana, Sierra Leone, and the United States, and co-founded the International Gallery for Heritage and Culture in Providence, where he is the Artistic Director. He teaches at the University of Rhode Island and continues his studio practice in the time left over.

Todd Stong 2014

Sources:
Pawtucket Times archives
http://www.gretchendowsimpson.com/press/New%20England%20Home%202005/NEH_2005.pdf

Hope

Hope was purchased by the Pawtucket Arts Festival Board and used on a limited edition poster and sold as a collection's item as a fund raiser for the 2008 Pawtucket Arts Festival. The painting depicts the front of Hope Artiste Village, a mill building in Pawtucket. Simpson dramatized the simple geometry of the buildings by choosing a night setting with stong backlighting and deep shadows, thus cloaking the building in mystery.

Joan Hausrath 2017