Pittsburgh Center for the Arts






Inside the house behind the Very Huge Head, you'll find the galleries and shop of the Pittsburgh Center for the Arts. The Center, founded back in 1945 (when it was called the Arts & Crafts Center) is dedicated to promoting the arts in Pittsburgh,
  • through fostering several arts organizations,
  • gallery shows with lectures and tours,
  • a fine gift shop, with one of a kind, hand crafted gifts made my members of the PCA;
  • and finally, through a very complete school offering classes in many different kinds of art and craft and staffed by excellent and dedicated teachers.


The Pittsburgh Center for the Arts is located at the corner of 5th and Shady, with the classroom buildings and parking lots reached from Shady.

It is open 7 days a week, 10-5:30 M-Sat, and 12 - 5 on Sunday. Admission to the galleries is $3, $2 for seniors and students.




The Head, created by Joe Mannino in the early '90's, is actually a wood fired ceramic piece and was fired in place. The Head can be seen from 5th Avenue as you head into town from East Liberty.





In the galleries --









Shows in the galleries run from the traditional to the cutting edge installations. They are changed often, so if you are not delighted with this month's show, come back next month!



In the shop






The Gift Shop at the PCA has a wonderful selection of hand crafted items, made by Center staff and moderately priced.

For instance, I bought this wonderful little mouse there. But when I went back for more, for family and friends, they were all sold out!
If you like it, get it now, they are truly one of a kind.




Classes




The Education wing of the Pittsburgh Center for the Arts - a big building sitting on the hill behind the main building and reached from an entrance on Shady Ave. offers over 600 classes each year in 20 disciplines, ranging from painting and sculpture to dance and poetry. The Center is home to the region's premier ceramics program. During the summer they run Summer Art Camps, providing compelling arts-based learning for hundreds of children. The PCA also offers outreach programs during the school year, which include an innovative multicultural program for elementary school-aged children using international folk tales and hands-on arts activities. And much, much more!




One of the purposes of this page is to share with friends and family some of the work I have done at the Pittsburgh Center for the Arts.

The bird at left was painted in the Chinese Brush course. Below are several examples of clay work.




Drawings from the "Experimental Drawing" course; the first, a 5 second sketch, the second 3 contour drawings on the same page.