Burlington's Old East End boasts colorful murals

Lilly St. Angelo, Burlington Free Press
·2 min read

Burlington is a city full of murals. This story explores the murals that can be found in the Old East End and along Riverside Avenue, part of a series put together by Free Press reporters that offer tours of the murals that adorn Burlington's various neighborhoods.

This is by no means a complete listing of all murals in Burlington. And because public art is essentially a living, breathing entity, murals will come and go over the next weeks, months and years. But this list (and the accompanying map and photo gallery) should give you a pretty good start for taking your own walking and/or biking tours of all the murals Burlington has to offer.

'The River Dwellers'

"The River Dwellers" by T. Ariel Goreau sits at the corner of Chase Street and Barrett Street in the Old East End. The whimsical mural features animals in their natural habitats and trees with faces.
"The River Dwellers" by T. Ariel Goreau sits at the corner of Chase Street and Barrett Street in the Old East End. The whimsical mural features animals in their natural habitats and trees with faces.

A brightly painted river scene adorns a fence on the corner of Barrett Street and Chase Street. The Old East End, a new name for one of the oldest Burlington neighborhoods, has a mural painted by T. Ariel Goreau and inspired by the neighborhood’s proximity to the Winooski River. The mural, named “The River Dwellers,” displays a range of wildlife enjoying the river including an otter, deer, a tortoise, a bear with a fish in its mouth and a heron − no humans or development in sight. Whimsical trees with faces, red mushrooms and native wildflowers make the painting feel like a page out of a fairy tale.

Hearts on a chalk board, Pingala Cafe

This mural outside Pingala at Chace Mill shows hearts coming out of Pingala's little spot on Earth. Because the mural is on a double-sided chalkboard, people may see a different mural depending on the day.
This mural outside Pingala at Chace Mill shows hearts coming out of Pingala's little spot on Earth. Because the mural is on a double-sided chalkboard, people may see a different mural depending on the day.

Walking down to Chace Mill, a portable blackboard with colorful hearts painted around the edges is the perfect backdrop for a photo for Instagram. A mural just inside the door to Pingala Cafe, also painted by T. Ariel Goreau, illustrates an idyllic Vermont scene of a farm in the peak of fall foliage season and snowy mountaintops in the distance. Root vegetables and vining tomatoes grow in the foreground.

Pingala's Vermont farm scene by T. Ariel Goreau is on the large wall at the entrance to the cafe. It depicts a fall farm scene with fall foliage, snowy mountain tops and root vegetables growing.
Pingala's Vermont farm scene by T. Ariel Goreau is on the large wall at the entrance to the cafe. It depicts a fall farm scene with fall foliage, snowy mountain tops and root vegetables growing.

'Math Through Art'

The mural at the Shell gas station on the corner of North Prospect Street and Riverside Avenue is called "Math Through Art." The project was done by Horizons high school students in 2023.
The mural at the Shell gas station on the corner of North Prospect Street and Riverside Avenue is called "Math Through Art." The project was done by Horizons high school students in 2023.

Visitors at the Shell gas station at the corner of North Prospect Street and Riverside Avenue can enjoy the newly painted murals on the concrete wall that runs parallel to North Prospect. The project, named “Math Through Art” was completed by students at Horizons, an alternative high school program in Burlington School District as a legacy project this year. Brightly colored geometric shapes against a black backdrop gives a psychedelic, Dark Side of the Moon vibe to the wall and a quote by B. Fuller is stenciled in yellow.

Contact Urban Change Reporter Lilly St. Angelo at lstangelo@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter: @lilly_st_ang.

This article originally appeared on Burlington Free Press: Old East End: Touring Burlington's murals