BLOOM at the Children’s Museum

What a fun time we had at the Children’s Museum Pittsburgh on a perfect summer Thursday evening. Artwork, live music, refreshments, vendors. Good friends. We even had our pictures taken by a professional in the lower floor.

With my friend Jen, posing with flowers by Alison Zapata

Artist Mia Marshall
Live Music -Joziah Council
Just below on the right
Getting an envelope with wildflower seeds
It’s a Burgh Thing Flour Sack Towel by Jeanine Murch
Founder and CEO Terrell Grayson had a wonderful display of sharp looking bow ties
Vendor Sam of 112 Juice Bar served me a sample of The Pink Lady Organic juice blend.
Thank you for a great time Pittsburgh Kids

“BLOOM is an event to create an open space for the artist community, including the museum staff and visitors, to let their creativity blossom. This event will include a variety of ways to appreciate and engage with local artists and their work + art-making opportunities for guests to explore their own creativity.”

Manna Pottery is All Painted by Hand

Meet Rezgar Mamandi who hand paints the beautiful pottery and tiles you see in the photographs below.

Manna Pottery was at Shadyside.. the Arts Festival on Walnut Street on Saturday.

The pencil lines will burn away when fired
Close up detail -all hand painted by artist
The colors even more vibrant in person
The tiles can be made in any size
Vases, bowls, mugs, tiles, teapots, plates, lidded jars .
All beautiful.

Watch this YouTube video to see Rezgar Mamandi paint and glaze a ceramic plate for a wedding gift.

From the Artist’s brochure
About the artist

Columbus Mosaic at Clinton Elementary

Friday we went to Charlie’s school for Art Night and saw the students’ artwork displayed.

Charlie and Laura read the explanation

As we toured every floor, we saw this ceramic tile mosaic mural in the cafeteria. It was striking.

The ceramic tile artist Marlo Bartels Mosaic Saved article describes the journey the mural has taken. Here’s a short video telling how this colorful mural has been moved THREE times. You can not only hear the artist interviewed, but see Marlo Bartels do repair work on his mosaic mural at Clinton Elementary.

Mosaic by artist Marlo Bartels
Detail

Sharon Weaver – Portrait Artist

Portrait and a Plein Air Artist, Sharon Weaver is also my son-in-law’s mother.

This afternoon I walked up to the front steps and saw a package on the stoop. I read the return address and thought it looked like a box for artwork, stamped “fragile” .

Imagine my surprise when I unwrapped it and saw myself, Knitting.

I think she captured my likeness.

Thank you for the magnificent painting, Sharon. I can tell you put a lot of ❤️ in it. A happy birthday present, indeed!

The Sculpture of the Father of Organ Transplantation – Guest Blog

Memorial Tribute to Dr. Thomas E. Starzl at University of Pittsburgh
by Classic Artist and Sculptor Susan Wagner

On the University of Pittsburgh campus you can see this sculpture of Dr. Thomas E. Starzl, “father of organ transplantation”, seated on an iron memorial bench.

Someone added the mask! You can visit the sculpture on Pitt’s campus, by the Cathedral of Learning lawn.

Dr. Starzl’s bronze likeness was created by sculptor Susan Wagner and unveiled in June 2018 . The statue, sporting a mask during the COVID 19 Pandemic, was photographed by a friend of a friend and asks to remain anonymous.

Thanks for sharing this photo documenting our collective experience and reminding us of safety measures we can all practice.

“Wagner is best known locally for her three 12-foot-tall bronze statues of Roberto Clemente, Willie Stargell and Bill Mazeroski at PNC Park and of the Gulf War Memorial at the 14th Quartermaster headquarters in Greensburg.” From article by Deb Eardley in TribLive

Artist HELÈNE AYLON February 4, 1931 – April 6, 2020

In 2011 I had the privilege to meet and escort artist HELÈNE AYLON to her exhibition being shown at the Andy Warhol Museum. She gave me a signed parchment scroll which I photographed today April 7, 2020 scroll down to see it. 

Artist HELÈNE AYLON February 4, 1931 – April 6, 2020

BLog Post from 2011

ARTIST HELÈNE AYLON AT THE WARHOL MUSEUM

I asked Ms. Aylon  if  I might take her picture (with my iPhone these days)  and she graciously agreed.  Then she suggested we take one under the portrait of Julia Warhol, Andy’s mother.  It was Mother’s Day.

Her exhibit The Word of God: Helène Aylon, The Liberation of G-d and The Unmentionable runs through June 26th


Author of Book  (click for review) Whatever Is Contained Must Be Released: My Jewish Orthodox Girlhood, My Life as a Feminist Artist

 2016 Article about Helene Aylon by Zachary Solomon The 85-Year-Old Avant-Garde Eco-Feminist Artist From Orthodox Brooklyn

Driveway Art in Columbus

My DIL Erika sent me these photos of granddaughter Maura’s sidewalk chalk artwork in their driveway .

Looks like she used some painter’s tape to get those crisp edges.

I forgot to ask how long it took to create.

Painter’s tape
Maura’s Masterpiece

Susan Middleman At Spinning Plate Gallery

Artist Susan Middleman’s paintings and collages on the last day of her show at Spinning Plate Gallery.

Bold, colorful, and alive is how I’d describe her paintings. The dancers look as if they could dance right off the wall.

Click here to see more  her work  – Art Gallery Show  and a photo of Susan with Carnegie Tech classsmate (1965)Joan Brindle 

follow her on Instagram @susan_middleman 

 

Hani Shihada Sidewalk Artist in NYC

Hani Sidewalk Art  

click above link to see more examples of Hani’s artwork. Hani Shihada is billed as the Original Sidewalk Artist  (and due to 25 years endurance) he’s also the Last Sidewalk Artist in New York City ( according to his website)

Mary and I were coming back from the train in Grand Central.  We went to the Hudson River Museum.

Seen Sunday afternoon on Greenwich Avenue by Seventh Avenue as we were headed home..

 I’ll return on Monday morning to see the result and add it to the post. No rain predicted

Stumbling Stones/Stoplersteine Memorials

To remember. Read their names.

As I was photographing one of these brass Stolpersteine, an elderly man came up to us and said in German “it’s important to remember the bad things that happen.”

Artist Gunter Demnig creates the Stoplersteines  and personally places them in the sidewalks, using a small trowel, in front of the residences where individuals and families were taken by the Nazis. They all say “here lived_______” , their name and their dates and the location where they were murdered.

Writer Megan King says in her article https://theculturetrip.com/europe/germany/articles/the-deeper-meaning-behind-berlins-brass-cobblestones/ “These cobblestone plaques that bear a tragic chapter of German history are the open-ended project first initiated in 1996 by the German artist Gunter Demnig. Not only is their message one of remembrance and of personalising the victims by honouring their names, but their purpose is also thought-provoking, aiming to initiate discussion and stimulate thought.”

(Link to another post about the Stolpersteine remembrance project)


The last photo taken at night illustrating how the light catches the brass plaques. Here are a few of the thousands of stolpersteines placed in Berlin but the project has expanded to other countries as well.