Pittsburgh/Office of Public Art

Other Happenings
 
Though not a Preservation Pittsburgh event, we are forwarding information on an upcoming lecture by the Office of Public Art:
 
Lecture celebrating Pittsburgh’s Art Commission’s Centennial by Dr. Sylvia Rohr
From Smoky City to Green Renaissance: Pittsburgh’s Art Commission and the Shaping of Urban Space and Identity
 
The Office of Public Art presents a lecture by art historian and Pittsburgh Art Commissioner, Dr. Sylvia Rohr Samaniego, on Wednesday, November 30 at 5:30 PM at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center, Room 406. From Smoky City to Green Renaissance: Pittsburgh’s Art Commission and the Shaping of Urban Space and Identity examines the impact of the Art Commission on urban planning over its 100 year history. City sights like Doughboy Square, the Point, and the Three Sisters Bridges will be highlighted. Admission is free, but registration is required through http://proartstickets.org More information can be found on http://publicartpittsburgh.org A reception will follow the lecture.
 
Created in 1911 by Mayor William Magee, Pittsburgh’s Art Commission was first charged with beautifying a city then better known as “hell with the lid off.” Focusing on its beginnings, from the Progressive Era to World War II, and its current role in the city’s Green Renaissance, Dr. Rohr will provide insight on how the Art Commission has transformed from the founding visions of taste and aesthetics to its current role of shaping the city in another pivotal moment of change. 
 
The Office of Public Art is a partnership between the City of Pittsburgh Department of City Planning and the Greater Pittsburgh Arts Council funded by The Heinz Endowments. OPA provides technical assistance and educational programs about public art in the Pittsburgh region. For more information, visit www.publicartpittsburgh.org
 
Dr. Sylvia Rhor Samaniego is Associate Professor of Art History at Carlow University, where she also serves as Co-Director of the University's Honors Program. Dr. Rhor received an M.A. and Ph.D. in the History of Art from the University of Pittsburgh and a B.A. in Art History and Studio Art from New York University, where she was a Martin Luther King, Jr. Scholar. Her areas of specialization include modern art of the Americas, political cartooning, feminism and art history, and mural painting and public art in the United States. Since completing her doctorate, she has presented nationally and internationally on the subject of mural painting in the early 20th century, including conferences at the National Gallery of Art and at the Southeastern College Art Conference, where she presented her current research on Pittsburgh's historic labor murals.
 
In 2009, she was appointed to the Art Commission of the City of Pittsburgh, an appointment which has fueled her interest in the hundred-year history of that civic body.
Category:Authority