Thursday, May 24, 2007

Women in the arts

The New Hazlett Theater is beginning a year-long festival, celebrating the contributions of women to the arts in Pittsburgh. You can read the entire Pittsburgh Post Gazette article, announcing the inaugural fundraising event, but here is an excerpt that I found interesting --

The city lags behind the national average of women in executive roles at public companies -- holding 10.9 percent of the jobs, to the nation's 15.6 percent -- but makes a much better showing in the arts. Almost 60 percent of executive roles at Pittsburgh's cultural organizations are filled by women, according to a Pittsburgh Post-Gazette study last year.

The festival, Women in the Arts: Founders, Pioneers, Instigators, continues with a multi-day symposium in September and performances in September, November, January and February.

This is a continuing theme this year in Pittsburgh. In March, 709 Gallery mounted the Women's Work exhibit. Just a month ago, an anonymous artist posted signs around the Carnegie Museum asking --

Where are the names of notable women on the facade of the Carnegie Museum? Some suggestions for inclusion are written on Easter eggs and hidden in and around the museum. How many can you find?


More information about this project, as well as a statement from the artist, were posted in the Digging Pittsburgh Arts blog. Coming up this October, Future Tenant will mount Power, another exhibit that is working to expose the contributions of women artists in Pittsburgh.

There's something in the air, isn't there?

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