THE FIRST MURAL
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The mural on the east side of the Kauger Building, “Colony 1886” was first completed by Patrick Riley, whose grandparents lived in the Colony area, and the children of the community in 1994. It was refreshed by Riley and the people of the town in 2017. The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts has awarded Riley an artist/teacher fellowship. He has received the Governor’s Arts Award. He has exhibited in New York City, Washington D.C. and all over Oklahoma. He made a custom mask for Lady Gaga when she toured through Oklahoma. Riley’s family hales from the Colony area and it holds a special placed in his heart. He earned a bachelor of fine arts from Southwestern Oklahoma State University and later became head of the Art Department for SWOSU. As a teacher and Fine Arts Director for Oklahoma City Public Schools, Riley has shared his passion for art with thousands of Oklahomans for years. With the First Colony Mural and Patrick’s Eagle, his passion will be shared for generations of Oklahomans to come. Though he is retired from daily teaching, he is an Artist in Residence in Colony and for the Oklahoma Arts Council and frequently teaches workshops all over Oklahoma. You can visit Riley’s iconic sculpture of “The Eagle”, a 28 ft. stainless steel creation which hangs in the Oklahoma Judicial Center, as well as VanDeman’s abstract painting entitled “Urbana: Ancient Spirits Embrace the City.” It is the subject of the 2021 Sovereignty Symposium Poster. VanDeman has also generously provided an exhibit of his flutes for the Colony Museum.