Pilobolus comes to Pittsburgh

The dance troop Pilobolus comes to Pittsburgh Saturday for two shows and DUQ’s Mark Nootbaar had a chance to speak to Associate Artistic Director Renee Jaworski about being in a group that everybody knows by sight, but few of us know by name.

Listen to the interview here.

Carnegie Museum of Art opens “Ordinary Madness”

For some it may seem like a trip down memory lane, for others it will be a gallery full of new discoveries but CMOA Associate Curator of Contemporary Art, Dan Byers says for him it is look at the everyday and finding it laced with the surreal, the uncanny and the extraordinary. The show “Ordinary Madness” highlights those juxtapositions by using pieces in the museum’s archives. “Some of them have not been on display for years,” says Byers. However, he says visitors may recognize some of the works from past internationals and from the rotating contemporary art collection housed in the Scaif Galleries. Byers says the show grew out of an interest in finding ways to sustain the city’s energy and engagement with contemporary art outside of the internationals. To put together the show Byers says he was able to “dig deep into the holdings.” Some of that was done by looking at pictures saved on computers but at other times he had to go down into the bowels of the museum to look at the works first hand. Byers says he found enough material to do the show “two or three times over” and he may launch a similar show some time in the future. Like many museums, CMOA is looking for new ways to use its archives and Byers says this is a great way to depart from the chronological perspective taken in the Scaif gallery. This show looks at works from 1945 to the present and includes paintings, sculpture, photography and video.

The show, which runs through January 9, will include two evenings of film screenings. The first runs from 6pm to 7:30pm October 22 and brings together works that focus on the irrational, ambivalent, and chaotic aspects of everyday experience and pop-culture phenomena. The second runs November 10, 6–7:30 p.m. and will highlight the junction between art and life and investigate the divide between reality and its distortion in myth, desire, and individual perception.

To help visitors through the exhibition, the museum has produced a fully illustrated, free “pocket guide,” containing color reproductions of many of the artworks on view and essays by Byers and other museum employees.

Listen to an interview with Dan Byers here.

Arts Festival Brings Green Message Downtown

The Three Rivers Arts Festival began in downtown Pittsburgh today.

The festival is weaving together several themes, including environmentalism and the interaction of the arts and technology.

Pittsburgh Cultural Trust spokeswoman Lauren Bracey says it’s a great coincidence that World Environment Day will happen during the festival.

“We didn’t have to become a green festival; we already were a green festival,” says Bracey.

She says for the past few years, the Three Rivers Arts Festival has sorted recyclables from trash and compost. Bracey says last year, more than 50 tons of garbage were recycled or composted, instead of being put in the trash stream.

Bracey says Guster, one of today’s most environmentally engaged bands, will play tomorrow night. Other music acts include the Dirty Dozen Brass Band on Sunday, the Venezuelan disco group Los Amigos Invisibles on Wednesday, and songwriter Kris Kristofferson on Friday night.

About 320 different artists will showcase their work in the artists’ market over the course of the festival. Bracey says the festival board also responded to patrons’ demand for more visual arts by bringing back a juried exhibition at the Trust Arts Education Center on Liberty Avenue.

Visit the Arts Festival website for more information.

Conflict Kitchen Serves Up Discussion

A new business dreamed up by the same person that created the Waffle Shop--a restaurant in Shadyside/East Liberty that pairs waffles with video interaction--is using "conflict" countries as his theme to for a new fast food stop. The Conflict Kitchen, which serves out of a store front attached to the Waffle Shop, has only one menu item--a Kubideh wrap, which is accompanied by a back story on Iranian culture, food and long-standing political turmoil. The shop is a collaborative effort between Carnegie Mellon professor and artist Jon Rubin, John Pena and Dawn Weleski, who created it based on two bad business models: sell food that is unfamiliar to customers and make it an ever-changing theme. In the fall the shop will probably turn its focus to Afghanistan and Rubin says they're still mulling over another country for the third phase, perhaps Venezuela or North Korea. The Sprout Fund has financed the Kitchen for a year, but Rubin says it could continue depending on how the first round turns out. Rubin says as the shop has grown in popularity it has sparked the kind of reaction they'd hoped for: lots of free flowing discussion and inquiry about the culture. He says they've also seen an outpouring from Pittsburgh's Persian community. The Kitchen also offers programming, including a shared Skype dinner with people in Tehran this Saturday, movie screenings and informational wrappers. The Conflict Kitchen is located at the corner of South Highland Avenue and Baum Boulevard.

Gourlay Brings Expertise to River City Brass Band

James Gourlay started playing the tuba when he was ten years old.

“Because the school janitor found a tuba in the attic of the school. I was forced to play it basically because I was really bad at soccer, and nobody would have me on their team.”

Now he’s a world-famous musician and the newly-appointed Music Director of the River City Brass band.

Gourlay says after giving 12 concerts with the band this March, it was an easy choice when he was offered the position.

The Scotland native says the brass band is one of the most flexible ensembles in music.

“The River City Brass Band is capable of playing anything from jazz and pop to much more serious and contemporary music,” says Gourlay. “So I’ll be trying, in my role as Director of Music, to balance the programs so that if you come to one of our concerts, you’ll hear something you really love.”

Gourlay says he’s already made a great relationship with both the band and the city of Pittsburgh.

Members of US Military Can See Art For Free This Summer

A handful of Pittsburgh area museums will be offering free admission this summer to active military personnel and their families. The head of the National Endowment for the Arts, in conjunction with Blue Stars Families asked museums across the country to offer the free admissions. The Frick Art & Historical Center is one of more than 600 museums that said yes. “We are pleased to join museums across the U.S. by participating in Blue Star Museums,” said Frick Director Bill Bodine. “Offering free admission is a way of showing gratitude and support to our country’s military personnel and their families.” Bodine says he knows this will mean a slight hit on the museum’s bottom line this summer but he thinks it is worth it. He also notes that anytime a museum can expand its reach in the community it is a good thing. The museum always offers a discount to members of the military.

Blue Star Museums runs from Memorial Day, May 31 through to Labor Day, September 6, 2010. Members of the military must show their ID to get themselves and up to five family members into the museums.

The Carnegie Museum of Natural History, The Carnegie Museum of Art, The Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh, The Rivers of Steel National Heritage Area and the Andy Warhol Museum are all taking part in the program. A list of all the participating museums can be found online.

Artists Kick Off a Year of Artrageous Exhibits

The Associated Artists of Pittsburgh is celebrating 100 years of recognizing and promoting southwestern Pennsylvania's leading artists. President Kathleen Zimbicki says they've had their ups and downs and are thrilled to be celebrating their enduring organization with a year long celebration. Artrageous will display 70 exhibits at museums, art venues and cultural sites, like Falling Water, around the region. The group includes 450 artists who live or have lived in the Pittsburgh region and many have gone on to successful careers in the art world. Andy Warhol was once a member; one of his pieces sold for $200 in 1948. Zimbicki encourages people to buy the art and try and find the next "Andy Warhol." She says it's the longest running multimedia artist group in the country that shows in a major museum--the Carnegie Museum of Art.

This Musical City: Tony DePaolis

Pittsburgh’s long and deep jazz tradition is now finding a new energy with some second-generation musicians. Among them is bassist Tony DePaolis who has just released his first CD. DePaolis says his influences are not just the jazz greats; he also grew up listening to a long and eclectic list of artists including Frank Zappa, Sun Ra and Rhassan Roland Kirk. DePaolis says it is important for young players to have older roll models and mentors to serve as guides. To hear more on Tony DePaolis’ new CD “The Contemporary Dynamic” listen to the latest installment of DUQ’s occasional series “This Musical City.”

Restoration Begins on Beardon “T” Mural

The Port Authority of Allegheny County has begun the process of removing the tile mural that hung on the wall of the Gateway “T” station. The mural by the late Pittsburgh artist, Romare Beardon was commissioned for the station when it opened in 1984. It has been valued at $15 million dollars. Now that the station has been closed crews are removing the 13-foot by 60-foot mural piece by piece. The work will be sent to a restoration company in Ohio to be cleaned and remounted on 13-foot by 2-foot panels. It will be hung in the new station before it opens. Over the years the mural has received some water damage. Jerry Marinzel is the project coordinator for PAT. He says each tile has been numbered and photographed and the workers are in the process of scoring between each tile with a diamond tipped saw. They will then cut an inch behind the tiles and leave the cement intact to make sure no tiles are damaged. The removal process is expected to take two months and the restoration work will take about year. In all, the project is expected to cost $1-million. Marinzel says some of the money came from the portion of the station’s budget set aside for artwork and the rest has been covered by private donations. The mural titled "Pittsburgh Recollections" tells the story of Pittsburgh. Marinzel says educational materials will be created to let “T” users gain a better appreciation for the work. One of the 780 tiles was installed upside down. Marinzel says the artist supervised the instillation of the mural and the Port Authority assumes he intended the tile to be mounted upside down so when it is reinstalled it will remain upside down. More pictures of the work can be seen here.