Pittsburgh art explores masculinity, decay and public utilities

Each month NEXTpittsburgh features new openings and special art events in our series, NEXT in the Gallery. Keep us posted on what’s new in your neighborhood and email lemccullough@mac.com.

October brings a final seasonal round of art walks and open studios along with pancakes and booze, moments without time, combustible art and an international book ‘n’ zine fair.

“Public Utility Commission” on view Oct. 30-March 7, 2027, opening reception Oct. 30, 5:30 p.m.

A constellation of artists from England, France, Italy, the Republic of Georgia, West Virginia, New York and Pennsylvania examines the concept of “public utility” in terms of how society privatizes the human spirit and the public spaces we tenuously hold together.

“Brain Matter” by Cecil McDonald Jr. (ALMA | LEWIS Gallery). Photo by artist.

“Cecil McDonald Jr.: The American Beauty” on view Oct. 24-March 6, 2027, opening reception Oct. 24, 2-5 p.m.

Chicago multimedia artist Cecil McDonald Jr. explores intersections of masculinity, familial relations and the impact on America of Black cultural artistic and intellectual pursuits. This exhibit includes over two decades of photography, montage, film and a video installation titled “Praise House: We All Shine.”

“Kendrick Lamar: The King of Swords” by Charlie Wallace (707 Gallery). Photo by artist.

“Charlie Wallace: The Stars Are Watching” on view Oct. 30-April 11, 2027, opening reception Oct. 30, 5:30 p.m.

Charlie Wallace, a founding member of VaultArt Studio, presents an exhibit that reinterprets the Major Arcana of the tarot as archetypes seen through the lens of contemporary celebrity culture.

“The Spring” by Chuck Olson (ZYNKA Gallery). Photo by artist.

“Chuck Olson: Sense of Place” on view Oct. 24-Dec. 20, opening reception Oct. 24, 5-8 p.m.

A Legacy Master Visual Artist for the city of Pittsburgh, Chuck Olson has been exhibiting across the world for more than 50 years, his oeuvre defined, he notes, “by the powerful example of Abstract Expressionism” and “the importance of history and its accompanying conscience.”

“Underworld” by Maggie Bjorklund (Bunker Projects). Photo by artist.

“Maggie Bjorklund: Glowing in That Waste” on view Oct. 2-Nov. 15, opening reception Oct. 2, 6-9 p.m.

This exhibit by Former Bunker Projects resident artist Maggie Bjorklund reflects on decomposition and the necessity of decay to the cycle of planetary life. The new works, says the artist, “emerge from looking closely at my garden, the woods and the various dusty, buggy corners of my house … and, by extension, to the decay of my own body.”

“Looking for a Way Out” by David White; “I See You” by Inger Gay Brown; “In the Blue Realm” by Gregory Puchalski (Manos Gallery). Photos by artists.

“Inger Gay Brown: Where the Wild Looks Back;” “A Solo Exhibit by Gregory Puchalski;” “A Solo Show of Paintings by David White” on view Oct. 9-30, opening reception Oct. 9, 5-8 p.m.

New Kensington’s Aluminum City Arts community houses a diverse array of art organizations including Manos Gallery, The Theater Factory, Alloy 13 Artisan Collective, Tri-City Historical Society, Costello Printing, Oakmont Candle Works, Gun Town Digital Productions, Donna Weckelry Photography, James Joseph Designs and Two Visions Art Gallery. This month’s Manos Gallery lineup features solo exhibits by local artists Inger Gay Brown, Gregory Puchalski and David White.

“Hear No Evil” by Mahogany Martin; “Waiting Room” by Alexa Rivero (Offroute Art). Photos by artists.

Group Shows:

“Alexa Rivero: Eunoia” (Oct. 2-11, opening reception Oct. 2, 5-8 p.m.); “Offroute Off the Walls: A Pop-Up Art Sale” (Oct. 17-18, 1-4 p.m.); “Mahogany Martin: Don’t Look at Me” (Oct. 23-Nov. 1, opening reception Oct. 23, 5-8 p.m.)

Offroute Art, a nonprofit supporting Pittsburgh’s emerging artists ages 18–25, features a full month of solo and group exhibitions paired with public programming and workshops.

“Forged in Flames: 25 Years of Art on Fire” on view Oct. 2-Jan. 18, 2027, opening reception Oct. 2, 6-9 p.m.

“Forged in Flames” celebrates 25 of the most influential and innovative voices in contemporary glass art, each previously honored as featured artist for the center’s annual Art on Fire fundraiser from 2002-2026. Across the street at Pittsburgh Glass Corner (5431 Penn Ave.), an exhibition of AACG Visionary Scholarship Winners is on view Oct. 2-30, with opening reception Oct. 2, 6-9 p.m., spotlighting local artists Kimberly Bañes Muth, Isaac Beachy, Shona D’Cruz, Christopher Figueroa, Isabel Green, Katrina Hude, Julia Jenkins, Priscilla Kar Yee Lo, Mitchell Kile, Haley Lindberg, Jan Loney, Curtis Reaves, Dean Wehrenberg and Lisa Zerkowitz.

“Almost The Same” on view Oct. 24-Nov. 14, opening reception Oct. 23, 6-9 p.m.

This multimedia exhibit explores how repeated imagery and objects challenge notions of originality and authenticity and features Carolina Alamilla, Sam Berner, Michelle Browne, Leslie Golomb, Jaclyn Harris, atiya jones, Sean P. Morrisey, Talon Pionati, Kathryn Shriver, Sarah Tancred, Mary Tremonte, Tresa Varner, Heather White and Imin Yeh.

“Transparency” on view Oct. 1-Nov. 13, opening reception Oct. 1, 6-8 p.m.

Presented in partnership with Associate Artists of Pittsburgh, this show considers transparency as both material and metaphor, featuring new work by Theresa Antonellis, Saige Baxter, Bill Brunken, Aimee Bungard, Thomas Callahan, Jacquelyn Cynkar, Norman Ed, Tim Fabian, Peggi Habets, Renee Keil, Kristen Letts Kovak, Craig Marcus, Sarah Simmons, Lucille Sturdevant, Zoe Welsh, Jannick Wildberg and Tazio Hilbert.

“Remind Me, My Dream” on view Oct. 23-Dec. 18, opening reception Oct. 23, 5:30-7:30 p.m.

Seventeen AAPI artists from JADED use painting, sculpture, sound, film, wood, glass and textiles to present layered identities and stories — Arieux, Anne Chen, Shimul Chowdhury, Sara Dtantirojanarat, Eriko Hattori, Sarah Khadraoui, Kiyomi Knox, Jules Lee, Justin Lin, Arthur Lindsay, Brent Nakamoto, Quartz/Court, Kimberly Rooney 高小荣, SEONI, Becky Sungja Kim, Zim Syed and Zoyakeko.

“Windcatcher” by Anthony R. Vitale (Double Dog Studios); “Betty Davis” by Jennifer Rempel (Bost Building); “Recast Distillation” by Susan Palmisano (James Gallery). Photos by artists.

Check these art happenings, too:

Oct. 1, 6-7:30 p.m. GASP (Group Against Smog and Pollution) and the Battle of Homestead Foundation present An Evening of Poetry, Prose and Paintings on Pittsburgh’s Past & Present Air featuring poets Paola Corso and Edith Abeyta, ecology author Patricia M. DeMarco, Pittsburgh Labor Choir and paintings on Pittsburgh air quality and labor history by muralist/portrait painter Jennifer Rempel. (Bost Building, 623 E. Eighth Ave., Homestead)

Oct. 2, 7 p.m. Velum Fermentation hosts the inaugural Pittsburgh Pancakes & Booze Art Show featuring 75+ local artists exhibiting over 300+ original pieces of work amid uncountable legions of pancakes served and eaten. (2120 Jane St., South Side)

Oct. 2, 6-8 p.m. Bellevue Forward hosts First Friday in Bellevue spotlighting shops, cafés and art businesses on Lincoln Avenue.

Oct. 2, 6-10 p.m. Unblurred: First Fridays on Penn Avenue enlivens the 4800–5500 blocks of Penn Avenue in Bloomfield/Garfield/Friendship with art openings, live performances, sidewalk markets, innumerable diverse food and beverage selections.

Oct. 3, 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Double Dog Studios hosts a Plein Air Painting Challenge judged by artist Philip Salvato, along with a Neighborhood Garden Open House from 1-4 p.m. featuring the sculptures of Carnegie artist Anthony R. Vitale (1924-2006), a trade welder who combined movement and steel to create fluid, evocative sculptures in the community. (317 Second Ave., Carnegie)

Oct. 3, 3-9 p.m. Rivers of Steel’s 10th annual Festival of Combustion returns to Carrie Blast Furnaces for displays of blacksmithing, coppersmithing, welding and other metal-crafting arts along with participatory activities, tours of the historic furnaces and workshops on the history and contemporary practice of metal arts in Western Pennsylvania. (801 Carrie Furnace Blvd., Rankin)

Oct. 8, 6:30-9 p.m. Irma Freeman Center for Imagination hosts JustART 2026 showcasing work from 50+ local artists exploring themes of social justice, with art sale proceeds benefiting artists and Just Harvest. (5006 Penn Ave., Garfield)

Oct. 9, 5-10 p.m. Braddock Art Crawl holds its Second Friday gathering along Braddock Avenue featuring Two29 Gallery, Gallery AFK, Braddock Photo Works, Ohringer Gallery, Ink Division, PearlArt Sound and Studio, Carnegie Library, Hollander co-working space and People’s Strength Collective featuring new work by Gwen Settle, Silly Goose Garage and David Hicks.

Oct. 18, noon-3 p.m. Photo journal OBSRV holds a launch party for its new issue titled, “Yesterday, Today & Tomorrow.” Edited by street photographers Jaime Bird and Ashton Erler, the magazine features Pittsburgh neighborhoods and people captured by 53 local photographers. (PearlArts Movement & Sound, 818 Braddock Ave., Braddock)

Oct. 23, 8 p.m.-midnight. The Andy Warhol Museum’s “Night of Death and Disaster” Halloween gala commemorates one of Andy Warhol’s most macabre yet prescient steps on his artistic journey — his “Death and Disaster” photo series exploring the impact of images (automobile accidents, suicides, race riots, electric chairs, gangsters) taken from their original journalistic context and re-presented as works of art. (117 Sandusky St., North Side)

Oct. 24, 1-6 p.m. Mon Valley Arts Crawl convenes at 301 Fifth Ave., McKeesport, with a street full of art vendors, food trucks and live music sponsored by Main Streets Allegheny, a county program using arts to boost downtown business districts.

Oct. 30, 5:30-9 p.m. Pittsburgh Cultural Trust’s monthly Downtown Gallery Crawl is a free, multi-venue open house spotlighting live music, dance, spoken word and visual arts at 707 Penn Gallery, 820 Liberty Gallery, SPACE Gallery and Radiant Hall Downtown.

Oct. 31–Nov. 1, 10 a.m.–5 p.m. Pittsburgh Art Book Fair celebrates 100+ local, national and international artists and publishers and the art books and zines they’ve created. (Carnegie Museum of Art, 4400 Forbes Ave., Oakland)

Open Studios:

• Oct. 2, 6-9 p.m. Bunker Projects (Katie Bullock, Nathan Wright, Higu Rose), 5106 Penn Ave., Garfield

• Oct. 3, 1-4 p.m. Brew House Arts, 711 S. 21st St., South Side

• Oct. 10, 3-6 p.m. Radiant Hall Homewood, 7800 Susquehanna St., Homewood

• Oct. 17, 3-6 p.m. Radiant Hall Lawrenceville, 45134 Plummer St., Lawrenceville

• Oct. 24, 3-6 p.m. Radiant Hall McKees Rocks, 734 Thompson Ave., McKees Rocks

• Oct. 30, 6-9 p.m. Radiant Hall Downtown, 308 Seventh Ave., Downtown

“Groteske Organik” by Erik Von Bartholomaus (Bottom Feeder Books);“Vase 1” by Isabella Maroon (Mark Rengers Gallery); “We Never Concealed a Secret, the One From the Other” by Joe Sheridan (StopWatch Gallery). Photos by artists.