MATTHEWS, N.C. — Osiris Rain is no stranger to a spray paint can and the questions he typically gets when he creates public art. 

“'Did you paint all of this?'” he said. “'Did you also do the one down the street?'…that’s usually how things go.” 

But it’s the public’s curiosity that makes his job so much fun. 

What You Need To Know

  • The mural was created by artist Osiris Rain, who is originally from Waxhaw

  • The mural focuses on Matthews' ties to its agricultural and farming roots as well as takes nods to slow food

  • The mural can be located outside of the Loyalist Market in Matthews

“You get to have conversations with people,” he said. “You get to learn about the community you’re working in, and also, the beauty of this is its public. You don’t have to feel like you need a special education to go into a gallery to enjoy what you’re seeing.” 

At 17 years old, Rain left his Waxhaw home to study art in Italy, Canada and Norway. 

“I enjoyed it,” he said. “I loved it. It instilled immediately a passion for travel for me, and since then, I’ve traveled all of the world and painted all over the world.” 

But a small cheese and charcuterie shop in Matthews led him to his next project. 

“Matthews doesn’t have a ton of public art,” Chris Sottile said. “We’re definitely behind some of the more trendier neighborhoods like NoDa or Plaza Midwood, and I just thought it would be something that would bring more people to downtown.” 

Osiris Rain paints a mural in Matthews.

Sottile is the owner of the Loyalist Market and began working with the town to have Rain create a mural outside his building. 

“I think part of Osiris’s design is a mother cow and her calfz, so it was kind of a nod to slow food with a slight nod at what we do here,” he said. 

Rain’s abstract mural works to incorporate Matthews' agricultural past and also ties in connections with farming and slow food. 

“What’s great about it is when you step back, you start seeing other images fall into place,” he said. 

Pops of color and rich history are all intertwined together. For Rain, he hopes it allows people to stop and see all the unique gems he’s hidden in this piece of art. 

“It’s meant to be playful,” he said. “It’s meant to bring energy to the area.”  

Rain says he’s hoping to create more work in the Matthews area. You can see the finished mural along North Trade Street as you enter into Matthews.