FAKE: New Psyence by Gabe Felice

Gabe Felice at ModernFormations

I love Gabe Felice's work. He has a nice sense of color and the paintings are simply charming. The exhibit at ModernFormation's is filled with his paintings, a feast for the eyes.

But beyond the immediate eye appeal is a sense of journey, with paths and odd markers embedded into the bodies of his figures. These interpretive maps seem to dance between reality and perception and purpose.

While the body of the show has been created on canvas, there are several pieces that use other substrates. It's an interesting challenge, since the novelty of the substrate can at times become to central in the theme. Mr. Felice, however, overcomes this with his exuberance. I get the impression that he would consider any unmoving surface the perfect target for his brush!

With ModernFormation's extended scheduling, you'll have another opportunity to view the work on Friday, August 1. There is an Unblurred for first Friday this month, but you may have to sift through Penn Avenue Art Initiative's Facebook page for a glimpse of what is happening on the avenue. Garfield Night Market, Most Wanted Fine Art, and of course, ModernFormations all have events planned.

ModernFormations
Open First Friday, August 1
Through August 15

Contemporary Figurative Drawing at Spinning Plate

The exhibit of figurative drawing at Spinning Plate is pretty intense. The artists are well matched, in theme and in medium. The works are consistently produced in dense blacks on white surfaces. Just by dint of the media, the works are imbued with intense impact.

Richard Clraraval

When I stopped in to see the exhibit, I was really taken with these small drawings of Richard Claraval's. These drawings represent his planning process for an upcoming exhibit.

Tim Fabian

I would have liked to get a better image of the above drawing by Tim Fabian. I've been following his posts of his figure drawing for awhile, and it has been interesting watching the permutations of his figurative drawings evolve. I've seen them included in other exhibits, but this is the first time I've seen several assembled in the same place. They have a dynamic action, and a freely expressed gesture, that is open to interpretation.

Marc Snyder

Marc Snyder's drawings for this exhibit are strong, and violent. Decapitated torsos are threatened by elaborate shadows; limbs and skin have been separated from the body. In all, a disquieting presentation that will take some time to read.

Stephen Tuomala

I've seen several of Stephen Tuomala's drawings in previous exhibits. But I loved the way that they are suspended in front of the windows that wall the gallery. The book pages looked like they were on fire, even on the cloudy day that I visited. It brought an entirely different dimension to the large scale drawings. Especially with the pentimenti of the construction casting shadows through the work.

There's a special music and dance performance on Saturday, July 26. It would be the perfect time to catch some good music and cool art. details

Contemporary Figurative Drawing
Spinning Plate Gallery
5821 Baum Blvd, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15206
Tues, Wed, Thurs, 7 to 10 PM. Fri and Sat 4 to 7 PM.

Stephen Tuomala, Death Masked: ModernFormations Gallery

Stephen Tuomala, Death Masked

Stephen Tuomala's exhibit of a new body of work, Death Masked, opened during May's Unblurred. I've seen Mr Tuomala's work in several exhibits, and this is a real departure, from his use of color to his substrate.

It is a discordant exhibit, with it's light and pretty colors and violent subtext. Continuity remains in Tuomala's interest in the body, but with a twist. All of the images pay homage to Lucha libre, the masked wrestlers so popular in Mexican culture. The pastel watercolors tones remind me a bit of Dia de Los Muertas, with the spooky confections of flower-embellished skulls.

Mr Tuomala has assembled a gallery of just masks across one wall of the back room, fascinating the visitors during the opening reception. The individual works had enough narrative cues to present an interpretative path. But the majority of the exhibit is centered around targets, with human silhouettes wearing masks and colorful bullseyes covering their torsos. The bullseyes themselves are filled with small figures in a myriad of poses and gestures.

Yes, the Death Masked exhibit is still ongoing. You can see Mr. Tuomala's exhibit through June 20 at ModernFormations. Stop by for this coming Unblurred.

April Downtown Gallery Crawl

Baron Batch (left) and Kurt Shaw (right)Live painting and finished painting at Shaw Galleries

I'm sure it wasn't intentional, but there were three venues during the Gallery Crawl that featured live art production during the Gallery Crawl. "interiorActive" had an assembly of artists at Wood Street Galleries, and there was a special CD release party at 937 Liberty Ave that featured a team of artists collaborating on a piece.

Shaw Galleries also had a painting demonstration. In the above images, Baron Batch is at his easel (left) and posing with Kurt Shaw and the finished painting (right). This is an intimate space, but Baron Batch transported a mini-studio to the gallery. He invited questions from the spectators, flinging responses over his shoulder. He has a very vigorous working style; you could hear his implements on the canvas as he worked.

TK Mundokat
937 Liberty, 2nd fl

I stopped by 937 Liberty Ave. for Bricolage's "immersive experience", but the sign up sheet was already filled! Ah well, my loss. Next time, I'll get there early enough. Upstairs was the The Orange Experience. The exhibit was a collaborative between Sound Elevator and a group of local artists; Tk Mundok (left) was among them. Lovely work! I enjoyed the exhibit quite a bit. There was a nice variety of work, and orange is my favorite color. This gallery has several images from the exhibit.

A couple other events were fun to check out. The Trust Education Center played host to a city-wide show of student work. It's always nice to see the efforts of young artists. The Night Market was back after a winter hiatus. Always good to see, I love the downtown and Garfield versions of this event. There are images from both of these events in this gallery.

There were a couple of other shows that I'll come back with sometime in the next week or so. For those of you that are keeping track, Unblurred is coming up this Friday. Rain or shine, I'll be there!

Art All Night 2014

Art All Night has been in the same place for the last few years; two blocks from my house. So, there's no excuse for me to not rouse myself and head over to soak up some ART.

The building is practically under the George Washington Crossing bridge, about 100' away from the shore of the Allegheny River. Sounds perfect until yo.u realize there's no immediate parking. Our little block was packed with cars all night! We had a steady stream of traffic all day during drop-off and all night as people came and went to see the show or listen to music. Or both. The building is part of what used to be a steel mill. It's huge, which is great because the crowds the event draws is pretty spectacular.

Since this is an open-hang, the work spans the range from amateur to practiced artist. It's also hung very quickly, with intake ending at 2pm and the event beginning at 5pm. The only delineations made are between adult content and everything else. So, the show is mounted by filling the boards as it arrives. You're apt to see a drawing by a middle-school student sharing space with a veteran artist.

It's fun to wander around, looking for familiar work, finding some work that is pretty spectacular, or something that was submitted by one of your neighbors. Which is exactly what happened last night. What was also surprising was that the quality of the work was actually pretty good, and so many local, practicing artists participate.

There were lots of opportunities for hands-on activities for everyone. One that I liked was a series of windows mounted on stands. You were invited to write all over them, and when they got to covered up, a volunteer came through and cleared the window. There were a couple of pop-tents and canopies that the kids were wandering through. I'm sure they had fun, but it was obviously too small for me!

The volunteers did an amazing job, putting this event together. All of the work was clearly labeled, which is a monumental task in itself! Getting the show installed must have been pretty wild. I know that the screens go up over a couple of days, and will take as long to come down. All of those that helped out are just the best art brigade! Congratulations to all of you on yet another successful edition of Art All Night.

The below gallery contains descriptions, in case you want to hear more!

Structure at ModernFormations

Structure at ModernFormations

Where have the last two weeks gone? I had said I would continue with posts about April's Unblurred and here it is, days before Structures closes! It's such a terrific show, too.

I spoke to Ron Copeland at the opening, and he told me that this particular group of artists have shown together several times. Maybe that's why the show is so tight. In this edition, all of the members seem to be working with habitats in some form or other. So, with a diverse base of mediums, the artists have brought their own concepts to the exploration of abodes.

Megan Herwig | Uninhabited Lands

I really liked these assemblages from Megan Herwig (pictures above). Very clean, but with a nice amount of detail. They're sort of a DIY plan for some theoretical space. Also, Megan Shalonis has a piece in this exhibit too, along with her show at Mr. Roboto, just up the street.

It is short notice, but ModernFormations has regular gallery hours on Thursday. The gallery opens at 7pm, and this will be your last chance to see the exhibit.

Structure
ModernFormations

Irina Koukhanova: Panoptic Landscape

Irina Koukhanova | The Lookout

Irina Kouhanova's Panoptic Landscape presents as a boldly graphic exhibit at first blush. The prints are stark in black, red and grey, the cast tiles are starkly simple, and the sculptures are strong punctuations.

The imagery pays tribute to solitary, wild hybrid man-bird figures. In some, the indication of man-made structures dominates. But there is a dystopian theme that runs through the landscapes and figures that populate it.

I like this singular approach to the discipline of printing. Ms. Kouhanova produced prints that were a combination of a couple of blocks, with variations in color and sequence.

Several sculptural works are included in the exhibit, many of which are fully integrated and free-standing. These incorporated multiple materials, with painted wood supporting smal cast bronzes. The imagery was consistent with the graphic themes in the prints.

Irina Kouhanova | Pomegranate I

There is one piece in the exhibit that really resonated with me. Pomegranate I is small, at about 16" in height (with the base, it's 22"). It has delicate patinas in green and red with bronze softly shimmering through. The light play along its twined and curved surfaces is restless and liquid, catching in the seeds of the pomegranate halves. It got in behind my eyes and pulled my stomach though my throat. It brought to mind all those things that I had conquered and the rest that remain.

Panoptic Landscape is a very strong show, and I would highly recommend taking a trip to BoxHeart to see it. The exhibit is open through May 16.

2014 Artist of the Year: Irina Kouhanova
Panoptic Landscape (Exhibit images)
On exhibit from March 18th through May 16th, 2014
BoxHeart Gallery

A Spring Unblurred

OMG! What a great night on Penn Ave (Brian Kane installation on the MWFA facade)

I knew it was going to be great night when I got off the bus on Friendship and spotted that double rainbow. Sure, it was spattering a little, but it wasn't even bad enough to put up an umbrella.

My first stop was Garfield Artworks and the Pittsburgh Artists Against Fracking fundraiser. The gallery looked great, as did ALL of the donated art work. The final count was 78 donating artists, many of whom contributed multiple pieces. Kudos and roses for Bob Ziller, who coordinated the event, making sure that the gallery was in top shape for the opening. There are several pieces from the show included in the gallery at the end of this post. If you weren't able to make it to the opening, there will be a CLOSING PARTY on Monday, April 28th from 6 to 9 pm.

Matt Gatto VIII

 Meanwhile, next door at ImageBox, there was a wonderful little show of Matt Gatto's work: Diametric Forces. I was really struck by the wall pieces in this show. They were compact bursts of light and metal, very interesting to the eye. The exhibit is open through the month by appointment.

If you're planning on going to the Mr. Roboto Project over the next month, you'll have a chance to see Megan Shalonis' Mansion Apartment Shack House. These brightly painted assemblages are sweetly charming. Now, I am seriously old; I had never heard of the game that is referred to in the show title. I did look it up, though. It seems pretty popular, you should see the umpteen number of returns I got on search.

Anonymous Street Art

One of the the many things I like about traveling along Penn are the random acts of art, like the piece at the right. It was just such a bright bit of color in that grey night.

I stopped in at Edge Studio, but I must have missed the Pyrotopia promo. The doors were up, and the two artists that were there had a nice collection. Louis Boston the "Pi Guy" who does art from mathematical equations and anomalies, had a table of prints based on pi. The robot sculptures of Donald Jones were simply fun.

Stay tuned for part 2 of the first Springtime Unblurred. In the meantime, get ye to the Waterfront for the opening of Most Wanted Fine Art's new digs! The grand opening is this Saturday. More images from Unblurred are available in the slideshow. Image credit: Jason Sauer (for the OMG! image)

Laura McLaughlin + Kevin Snipes | Flow: Recent Iterations in Clay

Laura McLaughlin + Kevin Snipes | Flow: Recent Iterations in Clay

Laura Jean McLauglin is a prolific artist, consistently producing quality ceramic works. Her works, while giving a passing nod to the humble platter and bowl, express a personal narrative through her graphic imagery and sense of color.

In Flow, there is a fair sampling of the colorful works that I have always appreciated. There is a bowl, Polka Vase, whose inside glowed with orange-y warmth. But I was really struck by her sculptures at Borelli Edwards. There were a few that I particularly liked, and they are included in the images at the end of this post.

I was particularly struck by Guerney for a Forest. The expression is enigmatic; the eyes aren't the same and you feel an intent regard. One eyebrow is raised, with an exaggerated arch that goes beyond mere doubt. The mouth is soft and belies the age of that wrinkled brow with its innocent youthfulness. It's an uneasy piece, with complex subtexts.

Included in the exhibit are a few collaborative works between McLaughlin and Bob Qualters. I've included an image below (titled Knowledge), and want to mention the there is a retrospective of Mr. Qualters' work at the Pittsburgh Center for the Arts (closing April 20).

Flow continues through April 12 at Borelli Edwards Gallery in Lawrenceville.

Unblurred March

Fun a Day at Mr Roboto

Warmer weather brought a few more people out for the first Friday Unblurred event. Including me, and my erstwhile companion. I have really missed going to these events, but this winter has had some really rough weather, not to mention a sprained ankle.

The Fun A Day Project was a fun show. (See what I did there?) Lots of artists took part in this, and it looks like it might be an annual event. The premise is to make and artwork a day during the month of January. It lends itself to small works, but the installation can make them seem like a larger work. This ws particularly true of Laura Vincent's small ceramic pieces. If you missed the opening of Fun A Day at Mr. Roboto Project, you can always swing by for the closing this Friday.

Sherry Rusinack at the Clay Penn

Across the street is Laura McLauglin's Clay Penn. Laura's work is interspersed with pieces from other artists. In March, she is featuring the work of Sherry Rusinack. It's a very inviting venue, full of color and cats. Even on a busy Unblurred night, the Clay Penn is restful.

Sophia McGuire

I got to ModernFormations just before the gallery closed for the night. Note to self: Plan on starting at ModernFormations instead of ending there! I had just enough time to look at the work and get a couple of pictures. The March exhibit, AMALGAMATIONS: Paintings by Brad Heiple and Sophia McGuire, is lovely.The works are textured, color fields. The fields, blended from a disparate palette, remain dynamic.

Although we are nearing the end of the month, there is still time to view the exhibit for yourself. There's a gallery of images for March's Unblurred below, including some from the Amalgamation exhibit.

Head's up to all my fellow First Friday travelers: April brings the return of the GA/GI festival, so extra everything this coming Unblurred. The schedule is full, and spills over throughout the weekend.

Great weekend for touring the galleries

It was a great weekend for touring the downtown galleries. The weather was warm, a respite from this long winter. Touring the galleries made me wish I had made it downtown for the last gallery crawl. There were some very strong shows, one of which closed this past weekend.

Terry Boyd and the echoes seemed to cry savagely

Terry Boyd's show at 709 Gallery was so serene. Intricate, detailed ink drawings that subtly incorporated thread and mylar fill the gallery. I particularly liked and the echoes seemed to cry savagely, which had this one tiny layer of mylar. The show reflected the season, in its starkness. Totally a subjective reaction on my part, and there is definitely more to the show than a simple homage to winter. It brought to my mind a sense of landscape, especially here in our region with its hills.

Unfortunately, this is the exhibit that closed last weekend. However, Terry Boyd has documented many of the works in neverlands on his website.

Masks at Shaw Galleries

I stopped in Shaw Galleries while I was downtown. The gallery had its usual store of historic maps and small statuary. But installed above eye level was this great collection of masks. These are part of Kurt Shaw's collection that he has been amassing over the years, brought to Pittsburgh from South America, Northwest America and Africa.

Toby Atticus Fraley The Secret Life of Robots

You've probably seen Fraley's Robot Repair on Sixth Ave. Toby Atiicus Fraley has brought his robots to Space Gallery with the The Secret Life of Robots. The gallery is filled with several installations of robots in their everyday life.

At first blush, I expected to be amused by this exhibit. It does lend itself to kitsch, with its assemblage of thrift store objects and 50s style furnishing. Although the scenes reflect several stages in life, there were a few that spoke about the travails of the elderly, like the one above of a robot that is struggling to get to the phone after suffering a fall. The installations were illustrative, and seemed to hang on a Rockwellian view of common life experiences Even when the installation was more somber than is common in Norman Rockwell's work; maybe it was the details of the installation furnishings that brought this to mind.

Toby Fraley has documented many of the works on his site. The exhibit has just opened and will be on display at Space Gallery through April 27, 2014.

Happening this January

So, I've been collecting pins on events here in Pittsburgh that I want to attend. This far, far from a complete list of all of the cool things happening next month. Just the ones that I am particularly interested in going to. Check out the board!

Holiday art specials, happening this weekend!

Happy Hour Holiday at BoxHeart

The holiday show at BoxHeart this year features great gifts, sure. But it also features work from all of artists that are represented by BoxHeart. This show is a great way to get acquainted with these artists.

There are two opportunities to do just that this weekend. Tonight is a special holiday happy hour, when you can peruse the exhibit with other art lovers. Tomorrow, BoxHeart and the other shops in Bloomfield will be offering special holiday deals.

Holiday Happy Hour!
Friday, December 13th
6 - 8pm

Bloomfield Shop Walk
Saturday, December 14th
12 - 5pm

Superfriends!

If you're over on the Southside, Superfriends might be a really nice stop. It's a last-minute, pop-up type of event with several local artists.

Superfirends
December 14, 2-6pm
CWP warehouse
2315 wharton st.
pittsburgh pa 15203

XMittens and Ludmila's Emporium

Love love love XMittens! Amber Coppings is now working out of a studio in Larryville. Over the next two weekends she will be having special open studio/pop-up store events. If you're in the neighborhood, check this out and then visit Salud on Butler St for delicious Cuban fare.

XMittens and Ludmila's Emporium
Xmittens DIY Gift Set Weekend
December 14, 12-5 and December 15, 1-5
December 21-22, 12pm-5pm
Solstice Sale
5252 Butler St, 2nd floor
Pittsburgh PA 10201

Of course this isn't a complete list of all of the really cool holiday art events popping up all over Pittsburgh. If you want to share something that you are doing, you can email me the information at susanconstanse at gmail.com, or leave your information in the comments form. Wishing all of you a lustrous season!

Mommy, I want art for Christmas!

Do you, Virginia, do you really?

You're in luck, 'cause there's a lot of great stuff happening over the next two weekends!

Small Business Saturday is tomorrow. I'm sure that you have favorite store that you intend to patronize. One of mine is BoxHeart Gallery, located in Bloomfield.

Blooming with Holiday Spirit at BoxHeart Gallery

 Enjoy holiday goodies while shopping for unique gifts of original artwork. In addition, they'll be offering 10% OFF all purchases and providing FREE gift wrapping!

Small Business Saturday Celebration:
Saturday, November 30th: Noon - 5pm
Free and Open to the Public.

- 10% OFF All Purchases!
- Free Gift Wrapping!
- Holiday Goodies!

Holiday Book Sale at Belvedere's Ultra Dive

Hosted by Small Press Pittsburgh, the Holiday Book Sale is gonna be great for all gifts Lit. The sale takes place at Belvedere's Ultra Dive on Sunday, December 1.

Browse selections from some of Pittsburgh's Best Bookstores, for the book lovers on your holiday gift list! New books, used books, art books, photography books, graphic novels, small press books, bestsellers, books on sale, cards, and more. More info

It's an Unblurred Holiday

Taking place, as usual, on the first Friday of the month (December 6). Tons of great opportunities to find those really unique gifts, for yourself or a special person. Check out the line up.

Pittsburgh Glass Center Holiday Glass Sale

The Pittsburgh Glass Center has events going throughout the weekend, starting with Unblurred on Friday December 6. On Saturday and Sunday -

"Funky, fanciful and functional glass will be for sale for three days only! Regional artists will display handmade art and jewelry in all price ranges. Hot glass demonstrations will be ongoing on Friday evening. If you'd rather make your own glass ornament, you can on Saturday from 10am-4pm. Make a blown glass ornament for $35 or a fused glass ornament for $25." more info

Handmade Arcade

"Enjoy this earth friendly sampling of handmade goods from Handmade Arcade artists. Because nothing feels better than giving a gift that reduces, reuses, recycles and inspires others to do the same. Come out to see the rest of our amazing artists and craftspeople at this year’s Handmade Arcade, Saturday, December 7th at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center." more info

This is far from a complete list of all of the great things happening in Pittsburgh during the holiday season. The Small Business Saturday event and the weeks leading up to Christmas are going to be full! Enjoy, and stay safe.

Top of the Line Drawathon

Top of the Line Drawathon: a 24 hour online drawing marathon of prizes

This is a little short notice but -

Daniel McCloskey, Cyberpunk Apocalypse, has launched a Kicksatrter campaign to support his newest endeavor.

Top of the Line is the story of a kid growing into a hero, and in the process becoming a terrible human being. It's also kind of about a guy riding a bike and missing teeth (oddly) but this guy chops the heads off genetically engineered monsters with a sword.

But wait! There's more!

Starting tomorrow (Wednesday) at noon, you can -

Join Daniel McCloskey as he launches his new monster fighting comic, Top of the Line, with a 24 hour drawing marathon streaming at: danielmccloskey.com/new

There will be bonus rewards announced throughout the day, and guest artists dropping in. This sounds like it's going to be so much fun; I'll definitely be checking in throughout the drawathon!

Penn Avenue

So, I just couldn't make it to the November edition of Unblurred. I was too busy reading a sign on a building to watch where I was walking and took a tumble, twisting my ankle, and banging up my knee and elbow. Ouch!

I am sorry I missed the full event, which are usually so much fun. I especially like going in the Fall. It's a lively street scene with so much activity that I rarely am able to get to all of it. I did get a chance to visit Penn Ave this past weekend. I stopped at ModernFormations to take a look at their current exhibits.

Signs From the Times: An exhibition of new works by Ron Copeland

Ron Copeland's Signs of the Times was really great! The front room of the gallery is filled with these collage-installations of signs. Just a really gorgeous exhibit. The pieces were nicely detailed and gave you a lot to look at.

The installations include found and fabricated objects, with some lighted pieces mixed in. The combination of textures, coupled with the relief aspect of the assemblage made for some very appealing work. With so many works in the room, I would have assumed it would feel crowded, but the whole exhibit had a nice and balanced flow to it.

Signs From the Times: An exhibition of new works by Ron Copeland (detail)

I happened to glance behind one the installations and found that there were several pieces completely out of view. It just sort of tickled me to find them, yanno? The show reminded me of the ghost signs that you see on some of the old buildings in Pittsburgh. The show seems to herald that nostalgiac look at our recent history.

More examples from Signs of the Times are in the gallery. There are a few more days to view the exhibit, and it's well worth the trip.

Signs From the Times: An exhibition of new works by Ron Copeland
ModernFormations Gallery

At Spak Bros

I stopped in Spak Brothers on my way up Penn Ave. Unfortunately, the works that were installed weren't labeled. But don't they look fabulous? There are a scant handful of these pieces, and they work really well with the space. Very whimsical! (Thanks for the update! Gabe Felice is the artist)



December's Unblurred should be a really good one. You should definitely bring your gift-giving list with you, though. Past years' experience has demonstrated that this is a great place to find something special and unique for those on your list.

Mostly Mod / Artica will be open, with their eclectic mix of kitsch and classic collectibles.

Stuff 'n Such Society, located in the basement of Most Wanted Fine Art, is a great place to pick up that one action figure from the Star Wars series that your friend doesn't have.

Clay Penn is the studio of Laura McLaughlin. Expect amazingly detailed ceramic art.

Pulse is going to be having a gift mart with lots of DIY vendors.

And stop by the Pittsburgh Glass Center for the Holiday Glass Sale.

Penn Ave in October

Garfield Night Market

I started my Penn Ave tour at the Garfield Night Market last First Friday (aka Unblurred). Great place to start, since it opens earlier than most of the venues on Penn. Plus, you can get a taste of something to keep you going during your long walk. Unfortunately, October was the last Night Market for the season, but they will be returning in the Spring.

The Dirty Poet

A lot of random stuff happens on Penn Ave during Unblurred. This past one, we were treated to a mostly-brass marching band. Which was totally fun. Although the Dirty Poet posts all over the city, I did run into one on a pole near Evaline St. Always a pleasure to read these, and they're distributed pretty evenly across neighborhoods.

But the meat of Unblurred remains the exhibits. First up, Olga Brindar had a solo at Artists In Motion.

Olga Brindar - And then there was that unforgettable morning when Blackbird was out walking

There were more than a few of these large-scale drawings in the exhibit. I love the touch of myth that underlie these works.

I could here the sweet strains of John Coltraine, just a block away, at Mr. Roboto Project. Nicholas Perney, who uses the musicians of the jazz era as a source of inspiration, had a solo in the venue's space. The works were all created with mixed media on wood blocks. Very dramatic. (below)

Nicholas Perney at Mr. Roboto Project

The Irma Freeman Center exhibited its third round of Pittsburgh-based art. As always, the show is a democratic survey of Pittsburgh as seen through the eyes of its artists. The works are varied in media and concept, ranging from representational to concept.

Laurie Mancuso Rusty

 I particularly liked the above work by Laurie Mancuso, and there were a lot of really delicious works to enjoy. Some of my favorites are included in the gallery at the end of this post.

Paulette Poullet at ModernFormations Gallery

ModernFormations had a strong doubleheader for October. really a must-see pairing that offer completely different views on the subject of place. Paulette Poullet (above) is exhibiting Our Disappearing City in the back gallery. I wish the image did justice to the work, really. I found the work to be pretty compelling.

Kurt Garrison Looking Back: Tate Modern

 The front gallery at Modern Formations hosted Things Are Looking Up: Abstract Tourist & Architectural Photography by Kurt Garrison. The title really says it all. Really striking work that went way beyond the concept of tourist.

Enjoy the Gallery!

Francis Crisafio at 707 Penn

Francis Crisafio

The last Gallery Crawl downtown was very packed, with spillover from the welcome party for the duck crowding the galleries. It was difficult to really get a good look at the work in most of the galleries during the Crawl, and I know I have to go back.

One show in particular was Francis Crisafio's solo at 707 Gallery. There's more to explore here than the undeniably good work on the walls, however brief a glimpse I got.

The works were large photographs that looked like live action collage. The images themselves were consistently strong and seemed very sensitive. But it was the use of masks in the portraits that was so intriguing.

The exhibition incorporates drawings, recycled photographs, and print media as well as body gesture to explore issues of race, class, and gender. The exhibition is open to the public Friday, September 13, through Sunday, November 3, 2013.

Holdup in the Hood
Francis Crisafio
through November 3, 2013
707 Gallery
707 Penn Ave
Pittsburgh PA 15222

Fragmentation: New Work by Seth Clark

Seth Clark Mass I (diptych)Collage, Charcoal, Gouache, Pastel, Acrylic, Graphite on Panel, 72" X 84"[/caption]

Really great show at BoxHeart this month. Seth Clark has a solo of his large collage works of deteriorating architecture.

The works are a contrast of serene, empty space with heavily layered paper combined with drawing media. Clark achieves an incredible depth in these works, I feel like my hand would sink into the surface of the collage. Honestly, I really wanted to riffle through those layers. I'm sure there are secret letters and old movie tickets hidden in the walls.

From the show description:

These images are created through an ambitious layering process. Clark collages with found paper to reflect the fragmented and complex tactility of decay. Once a dimensional foundation is achieved, various mixed media are used to bring definition and depth to these raw materials. The processes of collage and drawing alternate between themselves lending to a seamless blend of the two mediums. It often takes months for the subject to appear out of the many scraps of paper and scribble.

Seth Clark's Fragmentation exhibit is up through October 12 at BoxHeart. Well worth the time to go and see.

September 17 - October 12, 2013
Fragmentation
New Work by: Seth Clark
BoxHeart
4523 Liberty Avenue
Pittsburgh, PA 15224

Chris McGinnis at 709

Chris McGinnis The Productive Machine #13

A really stand-out exhibit at the last downtown Gallery Crawl in July was at 709, where Chris McGinnis is showing The Productive Machine.

The presented works are a combination of drawings and paintings, with the subject of manual labor and urban environment. The works themselves seem to herald a romanticized vision of skilled labor, reminiscent of the Social Realism movement. There are some subtle observations about the nearly-defunct manufacturing dichotomy. The works record the current state of Rust Belt environs, showing the abandonment of manufacturing. Social Realism aimed to expose the plight of the underclass; these works continue to record those disparities.

Chris McGinnis
Staccato Rhythm II (After Gilbreath)

Interesting in this show is the exhibit of studies alongside their painted counterparts. And in an exhibit of interesting works I thought The Productive Machine #13 (above) particularly interesting. The study that paired with the piece, Staccato Rhythm II (After Gilbreath) (pictured left), is inset into the corner. The discord was intense, since the inset was an entirely different handling of pigment. The color keeps the superimposed images justified, but the deliberate obliteration of detail in the figure as well as the glowing diagram lines push an aslant dimension into the plane.

I like this pairing too -

Chris McGinnis The Productive Machine #12

Chris McGinnis The Productive Machine #12 (Study)

 The drawing is held very true to form in both of these pairings,as well as with the pairings in the rest of the exhibit. Color gives the work an added dimension, while remaining true to composition and values. Because I am an artist myself, I would love to see the previous steps that led up to the drawing as well as any intervening studies between these very fine drawings and their pigmented counterparts.

Nothing like procrastination; I have been meaning to write about this exhibit for a couple weeks. Unfortunately for you, Dear Reader, there is only this weekend to see it. The Productive Machine closes on Sunday, September 1. Yes, 709 Gallery does have Sunday hours. So, what are you doing this weekend?

Chris McGinnis
The Productive Machine
709 Penn Gallery
July 12-September 1, 2013