Act Shocked: Pittsburgh Leaders Surprised Again by the Loss of Downtown Retail

Guess I'll be back posting some. This topic is obviously worthy of a longer take, but honestly, could the reasons for this decline be more self evident?

Almost every action of city government has placed tourists, visitors and above all parking before residential development and livability in and near the downtown. Not surprisingly, retail has died.

Compare Downtown Pittsburgh to the booming emerging/reviving East Liberty district. The difference is the intricate, dense, connected neighborhoods around East Liberty- Shadyside, Squirrel Hill, Friendship, Bloomfield, Oakland that support retail.

Government thugs destroyed and removed residents from the Hill District, gutted the heart of Allegheny City and removed housing from the Strip. What did they think would happen?

Here we go again!

Lack of retailers seen as a weakness in Downtown Pittsburgh

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

Awesome!

Laura McLauglin and Bob Ziller at Awesome Books

It's been around a year since Awesome Books popped up in their Liberty Ave location in downtown Pittsburgh. The space, originally raw and bare, has become populated with a well chosen array of books, housing a selection of independent press books, and playing host to a number of events.

Laura McLaughlin and Bob Ziller have made the storefront into a haven not only for independent bookstores, but for local cultural events as well. Back in November, Awesome Books hosted a reading of A Film About Billy by Daniel McCloskey. Great story, if you haven't had a chance to read it yet. More recently, this little gem of a bookstore also played host to Moon Calling, an exhibition of paintings by Richard Rappaport.

Awesome Books is also beginning to publish their own indepenedent imprint, Lascaux Editions, a very exciting development.

So, here's where you come in, dear reader. The fine proprietors are seeking support to keep their storefront functioning and to continue with publishing books with their imprint. Several weeks ago, they began an Indiegogp campaign, now in its last few days. Support, however, is not without its rewards. Premiums included everything from limited edition prints to signed first editions. But don't let that influence you, Awesome Books deserves your support for the contributions they have brought to out cultural landscape.

Awesome Books
Indiegogo campaign929 Liberty Ave.
Pittsburgh PA 15222

September's Downtown Gallery Crawl

I love the Fall season. After the lazy summer days, everybody seems ready to get back to the serious business of putting on great shows and doing really fun art stuff. The Gallery Crawl in the Cultural District is no slacker when it comes to putting some fun stuff out there. I really enjoyed my evening out in the environs of Downtown Pittsburgh. That's not to say that there weren't some very serious exhibits going, but I think I'll save that for another day.

There were two artist markets taking place during the Gallery Crawl on Friday. The first one that I visited was ART Squared in Market Square, a loosely organized offering of DIY crafts, art and music. I was there pretty early, so I am sure that things picked up as the evening wore on.

I had a blast at the Night Market. It was on two short alleys off of Liberty Avenue and it was packed with vendors. Lots and lots of tasty victuals and even tastier crafts. Soy Sos was spinning some tunes, and there were people just starting to dance. Some of the vendors, like Tugboat Printshop, were familiar. Some were new to me; there was a vendor, Creative Customology that had the best floral jewelry. I loved the necklaces!

Another fun stop was the Handmade Arcade's DIY Portrait Studio The sort-of photobooth popped up in an empty storefront on Liberty Ave. There were backdrops and props. Sooo many feather boas!

Some stops to consider on your next trip downtown -

PNC Legacy Project, located om Liberty Ave.

Cell Phone Disco on Tito Way

Awesome Books, on Liberty Ave.

Enjoy the slideshow. I wish I had more picture to share, but it was dark and a LOT of my shots are just not worth sharing. If anybody wants to pass a digital camera on to me, you would have my undying gratitude.

A pop up tour

Project Pop Up had a soft launch of several spaces during Pittsburgh's Light Up celebration on November 18. I took a little time on Saturday to tour the spaces, which are all in different stages of readiness. It appears that the Pop Ups cover a lot of ground, from retail to art projects.



I was not able to get into most of the locations, but did make it a point to get at least outdoors images. There is a map available for download, along with a brief description of each of the projects. Below are links to each of the projects, along with address and some descriptions.

The Sweet Lounge
They are billing themselves as a "sober bar" on their website, which is under heavy construction. I got an outdoors shot, but the lounge won't be open until mid December. The pictures on the site look scrumptious.
901 Penn Ave.

Robot Repairs
Falling under the category of art project, the Robot Repairs shop is an installation work by artist Toby Atticus Fraley. You can read more about it on the project's website. There are no open hours, what you see is what you get.
210 Sixth St.

Burgheoisie (Listed as Steel Town Craft Co-Lab)
There are several Artist/Designer/Crafter represented at Burgheoisie, with home and personal accessories in abundance. By Suz hats and accessories, beautiful ceramic wares by Robyn's Nest Pottery, and crafty adornments by Spyral Eyed Studios and Dollz-n-Skullz are sharing the space.
208 Sixth St.

Summer Sky Eternal
The idea of perpetual summer is rather nice. I gather that this project will be offering respite from Pittsburgh's gloomy weather. It wasn't up and running when I went by the space.
604 Liberty Ave.

Society for the Advancement of Miniature Curiosa
Aside from the map's description, I can't find a single thing on the intertubes about this project. From the map: "A gallery, toy theater parlor, performance space, & workshop that seeks to spark the resurgence of curiosity and wonderment in Downtown Pittsburgh."
929 Liberty Ave.
2nd Floor

Awesome Books
Awesome Books, headquartered in Garfield, has taken over a space on Liberty Avenue. Bob Ziller was there, greeting the curious, on Saturday. He has a lot of plans for his space. His selection includes small and independent press, collectibles, and memorabilia. Watch for readings and other special events.
929 Liberty Ave.
1st Floor

Community
As with the Society for the Advancement of Miniature Curiosa, the only thing I can find on this project is the description from the map, although it appears that the monitor display is pretty much the project. From the map: "A photographic installation comprised of morphing photographic portraiture, analog televisions, and a wall of personalities and identities, representing the importance of community."
422 Wood St.

The Pop Up projects is evenly divided into retail and installation concepts. I've included a slideshow of the spaces, each carefully captioned. Enjoy! You can read more about the Pop Up project on their site and blog.

Pittsburgh, Superhero Block Party: Fantasy, Furries, Performances Downtown

Each year the Furry Fest gets better and more creative as the city embraces it.

From The Toonseum Website

Two of downtown’s most eclectic and innovative nonprofit arts organizations are teaming up to bring you a day of superhero-themed activities for the whole family!

Parents and kids aged 6-12 will enjoy a host of activities, including a Superman sound effects workshop, make-your-own superhero costumes, outdoor jazz, free comic books, and a special matinee performance of Midnight Radio: Superhero Edition!

All activities are located on the 900 block of Liberty Avenue downtown.

Activity Schedule

(Participants may attend any or all events.)

12-8pm ToonSeum : Superheroes: Icons & Origins Exhibit

12-1:30pm August Wilson Center: Family Reading Series: John Henry Storytelling & Folklore

12-1:30pm Bricolage: Make your own mask Activity

12-8pm Musicians Courtyard: Make your own cape Activity

12-8pm ToonSeum: Make your own logo Activity

2-3:30 Bricolage: Midnight Radio Superhero Edition! Live Theatre Performance

4pm Bricolage: Superman Sound Effects Interactive Workshop

Afternoon, August Wilson Center: Courtyard Jazz

Time TBD: Live Music

TBD, Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership: Cookies & Comics Free stuff.

Free!

Frank Lloyd Wright's Point Park Civic Center

I will be publishing a few old posts once in a while.

"One wild design of Frank Lloyd Wright, I think points out the limitations of even a creative genius . One of his most fantastic plans was for downtown Pittsburgh--It was called Point Park Center and here is a drawing.

"Development in Automobile-Scale of Point Park, Pittsburgh," called for a circular concrete and steel building of mammoth dimensions: one-fifth of a mile (300 m) in diameter and 175 feet (50 m) tall, the building would be capable of holding one-third of the city's population. The entire structure was wrapped by a spiraling roadway that Wright called the "Grand Auto Ramp," which accommodated traffic in both directions and would have been four and a half miles (7 km) long.[8] Even Wright's drawings for the project were enormous: Neil Levine describes them as "over eight feet [2.5 m] long by almost five feet [1.5 m] high."[9]

The decks of the Grand Auto Ramp were to be cantilevered from piers of reinforced concrete. The ramp enclosed the interior space, forming what Cleary describes as a vast atrium. Inside are individual structures supported by pylons, containing the main facilities of the building: the theaters, opera house, arena, and planetarium. Bridges and platforms connected the interior structures. The roof of the building was to offer a winter garden and gardens. The main structure was flanked by "Fast Ramps": ramps with a much narrower radius than the main ramp that allowed rapid movement from the higher levels of the Grand Auto Ramp to the bottom of the building.[10] The incorporation of the automobile into the building was a manifestation of Wright's expressed philosophy for the scheme: to provide "newly spacious means of entertainment for the citizen seated in his motor car Winter or Summer. A pleasurable use of that modern instrument is here designed instead of allowing it to remain the troublesome burden it has now become to the City."[11]

A projection from the central building toward the Point terminated in a 500 foot (150 m) tower, equipped for light shows. Multi-decked bridges over the Allegheny and Monongahela were attached to the central building. Pedestrians, cars, and trucks would cross on separate decks. Both bridges passed underneath the central structure, where traffic interchanges allowed travelers to head into the city, across either of the bridges, or up into the Civic Center itself. Open spaces on the site were occupied by parks, an outdoor concert area built to accommodate 15,000 people, and a zoo. "

The original concept ran against a lot of practical issues which Wright didn't feel a genius should have to address.

"Wright's presentation of this plan to the Allegheny Conference in the spring of 1947 was unsuccessful, primarily because of concerns about the plan's economic viability and architectural feasibility. In a meeting with conference officials at Taliesin West, Wright seemed uninterested in how to handle traffic access to the bridges, and when asked how much the project would cost, answered that he did not care. When the officials returned to Pittsburgh to meet with Kaufmann they recommended against Wright's scheme; Kaufmann decided not to show the plans even to the rest of the committee.[14]"

The scheme was later adapted and there is drawing of this on the Wikipedia. it's great as a fantastical artwork, and also because some of the ideas in it appear in his later works like the Guggenheim in NY.

Wright proved to be, in spite of his genius, very much a product of his age in terms of his negative view of urban areas. Needless, to say he saw Pittsburgh as it was in 1947 as being a place with little worth saving. Thankfully for the city, It seems that nobody had the kind of cash on hand to attempt this lab experiment."

High speed, intercity rail

I love to travel by train. Lots of leg room, a place to plug in my laptop, ease of travel. Train stations are always in downtown metropolitan areas. This is absolutely perfect for me since going city-to-city makes up all my travel. Pittsburgh could use some more travel options, though. It wold be nice to be able to get to NYC, Philadelphia and Washington a little more quickly to see exhibits, shows and all that great stuff. Luckily, there are other folks that are thinking the same way --

PennDOT submitted the following as candidate projects for potential formal application later:

* Keystone East Corridor Harrisburg to Philadelphia — funding would include track, signal, power and catenary upgrades, grade crossing removal and station improvements or replacements.
* Scranton to New York Rail Passenger Rail Service Program Phase 1 — funding for part of a proposed restored 133-mile passenger rail corridor between Northeastern Pennsylvania and Hoboken, N.J., with connections to Penn Station in Manhattan.
* Pittsburgh High-Speed Magnetic Levitation Project Phase 1 — funding to design and construct the first segment (Pittsburgh International Airport to Downtown Pittsburgh) of a Maglev, or magnetic levitation, line between the airport and Monroeville/Greensburg.
* Keystone West Harrisburg to Pittsburgh High-Speed Rail Feasibility and Business Plan Study — funding for a feasibility study of enhanced intercity passenger rail service between Harrisburg and Pittsburgh. One Amtrak train a day in each direction now serves this corridor.

I don't know definitively what was approved for this proposal. However, from the sound of it, input is being sought --

The plan will enable PennDOT to implement a more efficient and effective approach to intercity rail transportation within the Commonwealth. Specifically, consideration will be given to more frequent and timely passenger rail service and increased use of the freight rail system for goods movement. In addition, this plan will also aid in prioritizing rail projects throughout the state by identifying those that will provide the most benefit for the limited funding available. Prioritization will take into account multiple factors. These factors include, but are not limited to; the availability of funding, the ability of the project/improvement to facilitate economic growth, and the minimization of impacts to the environment.

Here's the important part --

A public meeting to review the Draft Intercity Passenger and Freight Rail Plan has been scheduled. The plan will enable PennDOT to implement a more efficient and effective approach to intercity rail transportation within the Commonwealth. Additional information about the plan and meeting can be found in the attached flyer. We hope that you will help us to spread the word of this meeting to the constituents of District 7.

PA Intercity Passenger & Freight Rail Plan
Thursday, September 17, 2009
6:00 PM – 8:00 PM
Carnegie Borough Building
One Veterans Way
Carnegie, PA 15106

Now, I don't understand why they are having this meeting in Carnegie instead of downtown Pittsburgh. Especially at 6PM. Anybody out there planning on going? I would love to put together a group to get out there!

Art Olympic Theater In Market Square

, Three Rivers Arts Festival


One of the highlights of the Thee Rivers Arts Festival will likely be a downtown outdoor Art Olympic Theaterand one of the last likely to be hosted by Tom Sarver himself. This one promises to unleash all the bitter neighborhood rivalry and pride into junk gang warfare as teams from around the city compete.

"My final ART OLYMPIC THEATRE main event is happening this Saturday, June 21st at Market Square in Downtown Pittsburgh. The event will begin at the Market Square stage with a concert by Opek. (Ben Opie and company) Thanks to a Seed Award from the Sprout Fund and a partnership with the Three Rivers Arts Festival, this event is FREE and open to the public. Team leaders for this event include Joshua Space, Elizabeth Keating and Scott Andrew.

Stop on down! The event will happen rain or shine. Opek will be playing throughout the evening and beer will be provided by Penn Brewery.

WHAT? Art Olympic Theatre "Neighborhood Challenge" (Teams representing Pittsburgh neighborhoods will be competing to make sculptures out of junk in 2 hours)

WHEN? Saturday, June 21st (6 PM Opek Jazz concert - 6:30 PM Opening ceremony for Art Olympics - Event ends at 9 PM)

WHERE? Market Square, Downtown Pittsburgh (Part of Three Rivers Arts Festival www.artsfestival.net )

See you there! Tom Sarver"

Point Park Civic Center

One wild design of Frank Lloyd Wright, I think points out the limitations of even a creative genius . One of his most fantastic plans was for downtown Pittsburgh--It was called Point Park Center and here is a drawing.

"Development in Automobile-Scale of Point Park, Pittsburgh," called for a circular concrete and steel building of mammoth dimensions: one-fifth of a mile (300 m) in diameter and 175 feet (50 m) tall, the building would be capable of holding one-third of the city's population. The entire structure was wrapped by a spiraling roadway that Wright called the "Grand Auto Ramp," which accommodated traffic in both directions and would have been four and a half miles (7 km) long.[8] Even Wright's drawings for the project were enormous: Neil Levine describes them as "over eight feet [2.5 m] long by almost five feet [1.5 m] high."[9]

The decks of the Grand Auto Ramp were to be cantilevered from piers of reinforced concrete. The ramp enclosed the interior space, forming what Cleary describes as a vast atrium. Inside are individual structures supported by pylons, containing the main facilities of the building: the theaters, opera house, arena, and planetarium. Bridges and platforms connected the interior structures. The roof of the building was to offer a winter garden and gardens. The main structure was flanked by "Fast Ramps": ramps with a much narrower radius than the main ramp that allowed rapid movement from the higher levels of the Grand Auto Ramp to the bottom of the building.[10] The incorporation of the automobile into the building was a manifestation of Wright's expressed philosophy for the scheme: to provide "newly spacious means of entertainment for the citizen seated in his motor car Winter or Summer. A pleasurable use of that modern instrument is here designed instead of allowing it to remain the troublesome burden it has now become to the City."[11]

A projection from the central building toward the Point terminated in a 500 foot (150 m) tower, equipped for light shows. Multi-decked bridges over the Allegheny and Monongahela were attached to the central building. Pedestrians, cars, and trucks would cross on separate decks. Both bridges passed underneath the central structure, where traffic interchanges allowed travelers to head into the city, across either of the bridges, or up into the Civic Center itself. Open spaces on the site were occupied by parks, an outdoor concert area built to accommodate 15,000 people, and a zoo. "

The original concept ran against a lot of practical issues which Wright didn't feel a genius should have to address.

"Wright's presentation of this plan to the Allegheny Conference in the spring of 1947 was unsuccessful, primarily because of concerns about the plan's economic viability and architectural feasibility. In a meeting with conference officials at Taliesin West, Wright seemed uninterested in how to handle traffic access to the bridges, and when asked how much the project would cost, answered that he did not care. When the officials returned to Pittsburgh to meet with Kaufmann they recommended against Wright's scheme; Kaufmann decided not to show the plans even to the rest of the committee.[14]"

The scheme was later adapted and there is drawing of this on the Wikipedia. it's great as a fantastical artwork, and also because some of the ideas in it appear in his later works like the Guggenheim in NY.

Wright proved to be, in spite of his genius, very much a product of his age in terms of his negative view of urban areas. Needless, to say he saw Pittsburgh as it was in 1947 as being a place with little worth saving. Thankfully for the city, It seems that nobody had the kind of cash on hand to attempt this lab experiment.