Category: Art

The People at Work Show is a Go

THE PEOPLE AT WORK SHOW IS A GO!

Millvale suffered from the heavy rains and the Main Street looked like a river flowing right through the center of town. The roads were closed Thursday.  Anyone watching the local news, wondered if the opening of my People at Work Show,  scheduled for Saturday 7/7 at 6 PM, could still happen. And the answer is yes. Clean up crews worked feverishly to get the town ready for business.

Hope to see you there for the opening reception Saturday night. Panza Gallery  115 Sedgwick Street Millvale PA.

Regular gallery hours are W TH F 10-5 Sat 10-3

You’ve seen some people at work on the blog already.

 

 

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Pittsburgh’s Spring Garden Neighborhood Summer Evening

#sixwordSaturday

Steve and I met Vincie at the Penn Brewery parking lot and walked down Vinial Street to the Kaffeehaus on Chestnut Street.

My former photography teacher from Manchester Craftsmen’s Guild, Germaine Watkins, had a solo show of incredible photographs of Haiti. I bought the one of the gorgeous countryside that is right behind my head.

Vincie took this photo of me with Germaine

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6E16F7F0-47EC-4BB7-A9F1-9E8D44173465Cameo and Germaine as the show starts

City Steps
Garden in a Former Grill
The building we ate in has been there awhile
The Heinz Plant
Trail access starts here

87D6EBB3-2DD6-44B2-928F-BBCFD0836F6AAcross the street from the Penn Brewery in the Spring Garden Neighborhood of PIttsburgh

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Millvale Murals are Masterpieces

Right in Millvale PA, across the Allegheny River from Pittsburgh.

” Croatian artist Maxo Vanka painted a one-of-a-kind masterpiece on the interior walls of St. Nicholas Croatian Catholic Church in Millvale, PA. The 25 murals—created in two intense periods in 1937 and 1941—are unique, evocative and larger-than-life representations of faith and family; the immigrant experience in America; social justice and injustice and the horrors of war”        from the website   Vanka Murals 

When I parked on Grant Avenue, I noticed the banner sign on the lamppost and remembered seeing these dramatic and stunning murals at St. Nicholas Church. Information on the website link about how to get a tour and how to support the preservation of these significant and historic artworks.

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Shillelagh Maker in Pittsburgh PA

People at Work.  Meet Shillelagh maker, Mr. Patrick Byrne.   Today I got invited to his workshop, Byrne Shillelaghs,  to photograph him making a shillelagh.  Irish Walking Sticks, right here in Pittsburgh.  Made to order.  I got to see a work in progress- A Thumb Stick.  His custom designs are gorgeous.  I saw an authentic thorn stick too, with the thorns still protruding from the column of wood.

We met because we both donated our artistic creations to the Kidney Gift of Life Gala.

Shillelagh makerCustom Branding, Embedded Coins, Gems, Nameplates are all a possibility when ordered your custom made shillelagh.  Here is Pat Byrne holding one made of hard maple.

Sticks of wood ready for finishing
Wax on the ends to prevent cracking
Using the table saw
Byrne Shillelaghs Workshop

Here is Mr. Byrne, holding the shillelagh that was given to him by a man who said, “You’re Irish aren’t you?” and went into his house and brought this out and gave it to him as a gift. This first shillelagh started his thinking, I could make this!   And he does, beautifully.  His son does the art work and branding on the shillelaghs and made one with a Celtic knot carved design that was stunning.

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Mac ‘n Berries by Lexi V.

Mac ‘n Berries by Lexi V.

I saw it in on a shelf in the glass door built-in cupboards this morning.  Finally  putting away some special dishes the grandkids had used their last visit.

The Mac ‘n Berries  tag on the bottom reminded me of the creator Lexi V.

I bought it from a former photography class student who took ceramics as well.

So I set a place for it on the dining room table, took a picture and cheered myself.

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Glass Bead Artist in Berlin

C70943ED-8D41-4723-A0C6-627DC2F2E2C4You met Dagmar Bruckner and her husband Gunnar yesterday at  Kiez Eis blogpost.

Here she is in her gallery/store, just around the corner from the ice cream store.

dbeads concept store

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Dagmar’s first career was Occupational Therapist but about fifteen years ago while living in Brooklyn, she learned how to make glass beads.

She demonstrated the making of a glass bead. The colored glass rods are from Murano, Italy.

She lit her torch and melted the end of the rod to the consistency of honey, turning it all the time onto a metal tool.

 

Sometimes she uses a mold to form the bead but most of the time she creates each bead by hand without the mold, so they don’t lose the handcrafted touch.

 

One of her signature creations is –0A5CBD73-B9EB-4C9A-8A2D-99554BCFA6BA

Tiny pieces of the Berlin Wall inside a single glass bead

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Once a month dbeads conceptstore hosts concerts. 9A411027-2EEB-4E56-95E6-B359948DF6A9

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Her graphic artist made these bumper stickers with this saying! She gave me a couple to bring home.

658B16B8-8A3B-432D-9AE5-F94D388CEFDCThanks Dagmar for being part of the People at Work Series. She suggested a new project for my next visit to Berlin- Artists at Work!

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EAST SIDE Gallery- Berlin

Took the U bahn and then walked across this bridge to the outdoor East Side Gallery.

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It’s an excursion many tourists take.

1.3 K in length. International artists murals illustrate peace and freedom and adorn pieces of the Berlin Wall which were placed here.  Many graffiti artists have added to or obliterated the paintings. You can see dates of original painting and a date of restoration painting.

E85C4376-BCAC-4E2B-B22F-1716AE70CE2BCB7E36FA-2413-4830-9F14-793C1867420B You can see the restored and unrestored sections of the hands.

 

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A film crew was filming while I walked along the sidewalk.

I took the the backside  of the wall, too.

 

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John Kane/Robert Qualters Paintings at Carlow University Art Gallery

KANE/QUALTERS: MY PITTSBURGH  Sept 5- November 10. 2017

Thursday evening Steve and I drove to Carlow University Art Gallery to see this exhibit.  My friend R told me about the reception when I had breakfast with her earlier in the day. There will be an artist’s talk on Tuesday September 19 at 4 p.m. Click here for a link to the Carlow University Art Gallery page for more information

Steve and I met the artist Robert Qualters and saw his work, alongside the paintings of John Kane (1860-1934)

Mr. Qualters has donated two paintings to the University For John Kane and Big Self-Portrait. (He is on the left below)   

The painting behind Mr.Qualters and gallery guest  not part of the exhibition but they were chatting just outside the gallery

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“MY PITTSBURGH focuses on the Pittsburgh subjects of two iconic artists, giving special emphasis to the influence that Kane’s work had on Qualters’ paintings”

There were four John Kane paintings, one Mount Mercy was donated in 2001 to the University by Mrs. Elsie Hillman. The other three were on loan from the Hillman Foundation Art Collection   

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(Note: Photo credit on the colorful brochure- Tom Underiner.  No wonder it was so well done)

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Anda Chance- Colored Pencil Artist

Meet Anda Chance.  Colored Pencil and Watercolor Artist.

(Click on her name to see her gallery at her website.)

My friend J and I met her at the Artisan’s Guild Gallery in downtown Gainesville, Florida.

“She has earned signature status from the Colored Pencil Society of America in colored pencil and mixed media art.”IMG_0142Here she is with a piece she was bringing into the gallery on Sunday.

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This airplane, Warbird, had just been a show near Washington D.C.

excerpt from her website

Warbird

This Navy plane was used by the US Navy from WWII to the end of the Vietnam War to train pilots and ground crews. When my husband join the Navy in 1970, he was in the last class of ground crew mechanics taught to maintain this engine. Today, she resides in Douglas Georgia with other retired War Birds.

This drawing was a challenge and it really pushed my skills.

“Warbird” has been accepted for the 2017 Colored Pencil International Show in Bethesda Md.

 

IMG_1831I bought notecards titled Night Riders, with these amazing bicycles on them.

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René Magritte or Harry Potter?

IMG_1378 Harry Potter’s world

yet reminiscent of  Time Transfixed painted in 1938 now at Art Institute of Chicago  by  René Magritte Belgian Surrealist Painter

When renovating this old house, the contractor said leave the chimney in- and they were working with an artist who added the locomotive to create

Harry Potter’s Platform 9 3/4 

Not sure who the purple passenger is.

Found at Old Towne Toys St. Augustine Florida

 

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