New Public Art on the Greenway

Hopefully by now you’ve seen or heard about the new mural by Matthew Ritchie installed last week over the former Os Gemeos mural in Dewey Square Park.  If you haven’t, pay a visit!  The Ritchie mural is the second public art installation thanks to a partnership between the Greenway Conservancy and the ICA.  This new mural, like the Os Gemeos mural, will be temporary and will be on display for up to eighteen months (following temporary public art guidelines set forth by the Boston Art Commission).

Matthew Ritchie designed the mural and collaborated with a team of sign artists to execute the installation of the piece.

Tricia & Co. finishing the mural, Friday 9.20.13.

The sign painters were led by local artist Tricia O’Neill, a graduate of the School of the Museum of Fine Arts and owner of Signs Unique.  Based in Gloucester, O’Neill’s large-scale projects include many of the hand-painted signs in Fenway Park.  Tricia worked with her husband Steven Brettler, a Bennington Alumni; Noella Cotman of Cornwall Ontario; Loraine Lam LaLonde of Ormstown, Quebec; Christine Hogman of Merrimack, NH; and Nelson Lincona of Revere, MA.

Tricia and Steve devised a grid system using the existing granite and metal panels that clad the building in order to break down the massive artwork into a reproducible form.  This system allowed them to perfectly match Ritchie’s design and in just six days.  We’re very grateful for their hard work in making the piece a reality.

“Collaboration” was the operative word for presenting Ritchie’s large-scale public art on the Greenway in Dewey Square. Our list of partners include: MassDOT, local, private organizations and philanthropic individuals: the Greenway Conservancy’s Public Art Working Group, who encouraged the partnership with the ICA and Ritchie; the City of Boston Art Commission, who supported the project and Ritchie’s concept.  This work couldn’t have been possible without private donations from art patrons; Jodi & Hal Hess, Patricia La Valley & Geoff Hargadon, Mark & Marie Schwartz.  And finally, in-kind donations from Tricia O’Neill of Signs Unique, Benjamin Moore & Co., and NES Rentals.  A big thanks to all who made this project a reality!