Mimo Gordon Riley, a Providence native, who maintains a studio on Montgomery Street in Pawtucket, painted a 100 feet long mural on a concrete wall that faces the Blackstone river in Veteran’s Memorial Park.  The mural depicts bicycles riding along the tops of colorful waves of the river, waves that seem to glisten in the sun as the water moves. The mural continues a color theme of walls she painted that surround a Memorial Garden, also in Veteran’s Park.  The garden wall alludes to vegetation and foliage rustling in the sun producing sparkle of light and points of deep shade, a subject and treatment that is a favorite of the artist.

Riley is well-known in both Rhode Island and Costal Maine for her canvas paintings of trees and buildings where shapes, color and light play an important role.  Active for many years with the Pawtucket Arts Collaborative, she has served on its Board and headed its Exhibition Committee and has been an active member of the Art League of Rhode Island and the Providence Art Club.

The murals were part of a 2015 renovation project behind City Hall spearheaded by Pawtucket resident, Pamela Hughes, and Bob Billington, Director of the Blackstone Valley Tourism Council. Funded through a Block Grant and private funding, part of the parking lot behind the City Hall was used to create a landscaped bike path along the Blackstone River from Leather Street through Veterans Memorial Park. The bike path is one segment of a bike path that will eventually run along the river uninterrupted between Providence and Worcester.

Joan Hausrath

Source

conversation with artist
http://mimogordonriley.com/