Pittsburgh Art Events: 9/18-19/09.

Friday

Zombo gallery (4900 Hatfield St.) upholds its status as the most active art space in the city with its reception for Catfish & Such (7-11PM). TJ Reddick likes animals and bright colors. See what I mean?

It's not too late to buy a $50 ticket to the Unicorn Mountain Fundraiser @ Remedy. The event is called The Esoteric Order of the Illustrious Owl Bear, and includes live entertainment, a Bavarian dinner served family-style, an art auction, the new issue of UM (called Black Forest, to be released later this month), and a T-shirt advertising Pittsburgh's hippest art collective. For $35 you can attend the dinner without the material goodies, and for a mere $5 you can participate in the dance party. For details, check out the link.

Future Tenant (819 Penn Avenue, downtown) features a show curated by Jeff Schreckengost and Lisa Toboz called 'Dividing the Goose". The title apparently refers to the themes of folklore and fairy tales that underpin this multimedia exhibition.

Saturday

Cleveland-based Arabella Proffer is unleashing "Splendor and Safety Pins", which highlights her "faux portrait paintings" at Boxheart (4523 Liberty Avenue, Bloomfield) from 6-9PM. She creates mythical European countries and populates them with the characters she envisions. Her work is flat, cartoon-like, and vibrantly colored... and thus perfectly appealing to my aesthetic sensibilities. I believe I'll make a point of attending this one.

When was the last time you made it over to Braddock? See what Fetterman and Co. have been up to by attending the Obscurae Art Lottery over at UnSmoke Systems (1137 Braddock Avenue). For $45 ($55 at the door) you can buy a ticket to purchase a fine art photograph documenting the community. Depending upon when that ticket is drawn, you may get to select your favorite piece, from first to last. It is free to attend this event, but they are trying to raise money to revitalize their neighborhood, so donations are accepted. Eat some fresh bread cooked nearby while you are at it.

Imagebox (4933 Penn Avenue) is opening their doors for "The Red Tag Studio Sale" to benefit the Persad Center. It's rare to see the gallery welcome guests on a day other than First Friday, so it's probably worth a stop (6PM) to see the work of local and national artists.

Pittsburgh Art Happenings: 1/9-10/09.

A new year always brings the promise of an interesting and diverse selection of Pittsburgh art. It may take a couple of months for things to really get going (with the cold weather keeping people hunkered down at home), but sooner or later folks start itching to roll out their latest work. There are indeed a few events worth seeing this weekend, but some of them have been around for so long that you may have taken them for granted, and now you're in danger of missing them altogether. This weekend marks your last chance to see Life On Mars (the International) at the Carnegie Art Museum, In The Making: 250 Years / 250 Artists at Fe Gallery, and Inner and Outer Space at the Mattress factory.

If your tastes run more toward openings, you will have a few opportunities to get out and about to catch some receptions.

Friday

Check out Tim Menees ("You Still Can't Get There From Here") and Joan Iverson Goswell ("Journeys") at Gallerie Chiz in Shadyside (5831 Ellsworth Avenue), from 6-9PM. Menees uses acrylics and graphite to create imaginary travel posters and Goswell makes cool-looking books with a clear political slant.

Or perhaps you have the means to get to Sewickley? Mark Panza is having a one-man show at the Élan Fine Art Gallery (427 Broad Street). I've actually never been in the space, but I have met Joan, the proprietor. She seems passionate about showing art that she personally respects and enjoys. Obviously our tastes overlap, as I am increasingly a fan of Panza's photos and presentation. Get there between 6 and 9PM for "Structure Meets Nature".

But maybe you want to avoid "swellsville" this weekend? If so, just pop down to gritty Lawrenceville (4900 Hatfield Street) for the Zombo Gallery's 2nd Annual "Big Hang Up". It's Michael Devine's version of "Art All Night", and gives all creators a chance to show off their skills, regardless of whether or not they've ever shown before. That kind of format is always interesting because you never know what you'll see, and there is the potential for some very odd juxtapositions. It should bring in an eclectic crowd too.

Saturday

Boxheart (on Liberty Avenue in Bloomfield) is having their 8th annual Art Inter/National Exhibition, with a reception from 5-8PM. This series explores the way that physical space affects the way artists create their work. Twenty lucky selections were chosen from among 220 applicants this year- all asked to "respond visually to the Hegelian Dialectic". Basically, this means that there were a couple hundred people who presumed to claim to understand what the fuck that actually means (you can read more about that here). Anyway I'm sure there will be lots of great things to look at, and I'm not likely to risk missing any of them.

Finally, I want to mention an opening (6-9PM) featuring the work of Bart De Paepe at the Morning Glory Coffeehouse in Morningside (1806 Chislett Street). I'm always interested in checking out new places to get my espresso fix, and this one isn't all that far from my house. They seem to have some nice things going on there, and I'm a bit surprised I haven't heard about it previously. Check out their site.

Pittsburgh Art Happenings: 11/14-15/08.

It's been several weeks since I gave a shout-out to the local scene, so I feel an entry is overdue. It doesn't hurt that there are a number of compelling events happening around town over the next couple of days. If you are anything like me, you could probably use a break from the national scene. Out-of-town readers... don't despair, as the blog's focus will remain broader than this post may suggest.

Friday:

Five new exhibitions are opening at the Pittsburgh Center for the Arts. The one I'm most excited by is Altered States, because it features work by Romanian transplant and friend, Tibi Chelcea. Unfortunately he won't be present at the reception. Chelcea is currently in South America, no doubt having the time of his life. Before he left we exchanged several pieces of art, as we are fans of each other's images. His are mostly byzantine woodcuts evocative of the Kafkaesque existence so many of us find ourselves stumbling through. Despite his absence, I'm sure this will be a lively affair. By all means arrive in person at the PCA to see what other print-makers might be in town for this group show.

Robert Qualters and Charlee Brodsky are luminaries of the Pittsburgh scene, and I'll be looking forward to taking a close look at their collaboration, Autumn. I'm unfamiliar with the remaining stuff listed for the night, but I expect I'll find at least one more pleasant surprise. It can all be seen for a mere $5 (+ cash for the bar), between 5:30 and 8PM.

On the lowbrow tip, Zombo Gallery is having its first show in partnership with the new ToonSeum, This "show and sell" includes Mike Peters ("Mother Goose and Grimm"), Terri Liebenson ("Pajama Diaries"), Rob Rogers (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette), Wayno, Joe Wos, Lee Moder ("Painkiller Jane" and "Wonder Woman"),Tom Richmond (Mad Magazine), and many more. The reception runs from 6-11PM. It's altogether fitting that a collection of cartoonists be gathered here at Zombo's place in Lawrenceville.

If you aren't doing anything right after work, you can check out an appearance by The Yes Men, "activist-artists" who delight in taking on the bureaucratic and corporate interests that keep us down. KEEP IT SLICK: Infiltrating Capitalism with The Yes Men opens at CMU's Regina Gouger Miller Gallery this Friday, from 5-8PM. The event includes the "How To Be A Yes Man Workshop" and a "Business Casual Reception". If you haven't seen these guys, you need to know that they are both hilarious and thought-provoking. Some of their stunts have included a presentation at a prestigious American business school dedicated to explaining the benefits of "recycled meat", and an address to the World Trade Organization that included a tear-away suit hiding a giant inflatable phallus with a surveillance camera on its head.

Saturday:

I've not yet taken the opportunity to visit Lawrenceville's newest art space, the LUKE and ELOY Gallery (5169 Butler Street) - mostly because they hold their opening receptions during Saturday afternoons (11AM-5PM). But this month's show, Laughingstock: Humor in Art & Craft, sounds compelling enough to warrant a look-see. The curators ask, "Can humor and satire stimulate laughter as well as serve as a vehicle to explore serious subjects, such as feminism, the natural environment, the excesses of consumer culture, religion, sexuality, social injustice, and war ?" I guess we'll have to show up to know for sure.

Meanwhile Boxheart Gallery in Bloomfield is featuring the grand-daughter of German Expressionist Hans Groh. Irmaly Brackin employs a loose, colorful style that channels the Cuban and Latin American imagery of her childhood home of Miami. Make the trek to 4523 Liberty Avenue and find out how far the apple falls from the tree.


NOTE: For a comprehensive guide to area art events, please visit the Pittsburgh art and gallery info site. Go there often. Rick puts a lot of effort into collecting all of the relevant information, and he could use your support.