Amèlia Riera trained as a painter in the studio of Francisco Sainz de la Maza in Barcelona. In the grey atmosphere of the 1950s and sixties, she was a member of the initial Cercle Artistic de Sant Lluc and the Saló Femení d'Art Actual, founded by a group of clearly activist women painters. Together with other artists, she founded the MAN or Mostres d'Art Nou (New Art Exhibitions). From that moment until her death in 2019, Riera practised what the art critic Juan Eduardo Cirlot described as 'painting to the limit'. At a time when formal abstraction was the norm, she created her own language and iconography: a mysterious world close to Surrealism, but always from a gender perspective. She was, in this sense, a true pioneer. Her paintings contain beings that are halfway between a mannequin and an articulated doll, to which she adds chains, fasteners or locks, with references close to sadomasochism and necrophilia. An intriguing eroticism in a language akin to chiaroscuro, with a profound density and material texture. Of great significance are some of the titles of her series, such as Ex-votos, Sade, Eroticons, Electrothermal and Vampirism.

Riera took part in numerous group initiatives and solo exhibitions in various venues in the country, such as the Saló de Maig, 1962; Palau de la Virreina, Barcelona, 1970; Galeria Dau al Set, 1978; and Palau Solterra, 2005. Worthy of note is her major retrospective at the Centre d'Art Tecla Sala, L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, 1995. After her death, her work was revaluated in exhibitions at the Espai Volart, Barcelona, 2010; and La Virreina, Centre de la Imatge, Barcelona, 2022. Her work is included in the collections of Fundació Vila Casas, Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya and MACBA, Barcelona.