When visiting Galena, Illinois, you can’t not stop by River Bend Gallery: the popular art space founded by and selling the artworks of Geoffrey Mikol has become a real institution in what’s arguably one of the Prairie State’s prettiest and most welcoming towns.
In the 19th Century, a prosperous lead mining town and river port with great significance in US history – not least as home to Civil War hero and 18th president Ulysses S. Grant – Galena in northwest Illinois’ Jo Daviess County later suffered a cruel decline that didn’t end until the 1960s, when an ambitious regeneration of its beautiful and remarkably intact downtown streetscapes and stately suburban villas began. Its renewal has attracted creatives and entrepreneurs from all over the state to relocate here, and today, the tiny town is one of Illinois’ premier visitor attractions, its picturesque Main Street lined with upscale boutiques, coffee houses, delis and restaurants. Among these is River Bend Gallery, a photography gallery run by Geoffrey Mikol and featuring exclusively his work, which showcases his talent for capturing emotive moments in nature, chiefly in his native Illinois.
“I took an elective photography course my freshman year in High School in Chicago and loved it,” he says. “When I was in my teens I would show my photographs at local art fairs. They sold really well and received awards too. So when I graduated I wanted to continue down the photography road.”
Moving to Galena with his family in 2016, Geoffrey discovered an artsy, friendly community that immediately supported him. “It’s great being just another business owner on Main Street here,” he says. “People are genuinely interested in what I’m doing next, and in how I see the world. It makes it easy to be creative.”
Business was so good in River Bend Gallery’s first year that Geoffrey had to move to the bigger space he currently occupies. And two years later the gallery was named Business of the Year by the local chamber of commerce. Geoffrey keeps expanding his portfolio with regular road and camping trips with his family, adding new work to the gallery’s walls. And while he says American staples like Arizona’s Grand Canyon and a return trip to South Dakota’s Black Hills are high on his wish list, Galena and the surrounding landscapes of rolling forested hills, a striking and romantic contrast to the flat, farmed prairie land that makes up much of Illinois, remain his favourite subjects to shoot. His advice to visitors? “Downtown is fun. But if you get a chance take some of the back roads. This part of the Midwest is stunning to see in all four seasons.”
Photography by Geoffrey Mikol, Paul Mikol and courtesy of Illinois Office of Tourism
