Providence Historical Mural by The Art of Life

Historical Mural....well....sort of

In 1994, the City of Providence commissioned The Art of Life to spearhead the Downcity phase of the City's fledgling mural program.

An 82' x 16' wall was chosen by the City in the Arts and Entertainment district, on a very narrow sidestreet near the Providence Performing Arts Center.

Titled 'Re-Turn of the Century', the mural features two views of historic Westminster Street at the turn of the century, separated by a fictional cafe, and populated by contemporary people dressed in period garb.

The mural was based on actual historic photographs of this area, and also with information provided by the Providence Preservation Society.

The following before and after photographs show the narrow sidestreet - which is really just an alley, not more than 15 feet wide. This made it impossible to photograph the 82' mural in its entirety, or even to view the mural at an appropriate distance. However, this does cause people passing through to be enveloped by the mural, and to drink it in one section at a time....

Following is a detail from the far side of the mural, featuring a turn of the century policeman walking the beat. In the background, the spire of Grace Church reaches up to the heavens:

Note: Painting architectural details involves painting a lot of lines, and painting a lot of lines on old, uneven brick is not easy. Getting it just right is labor intensive, and requires a considerable commitment - both to your craft and to the success of the project.

Also keep in mind that when we painted this mural, we had only been in business for a year and a half. Even so, there is a remarkable attention to detail in this very ambitious piece.

Above: Riker Jaynes pharmacy on the left. Turn of the century paperboys on the right.

Below: The center of the mural. The artists pose in front of their giant-sized self portaits....

But wait! Why in the world did you paint yourselves into the Mural, 13 feet tall, scowling, and holding your paint brushes? Well, now that's a good story.... but for another time....