{"id":76147,"date":"2026-01-02T12:27:11","date_gmt":"2026-01-02T12:27:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/76147\/"},"modified":"2026-01-02T12:27:11","modified_gmt":"2026-01-02T12:27:11","slug":"a-pittsburgh-art-whirlwind-touches-down-in-bellevue","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/76147\/","title":{"rendered":"A Pittsburgh art whirlwind touches down in Bellevue"},"content":{"rendered":"

Each month NEXTpittsburgh features new openings and special art events in our series,\u00a0NEXT in the Gallery<\/a>. Keep us posted on what\u2019s new in your neighborhood and email lemccullough@mac.com<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

This January, the outdoor bleakness of a Pittsburgh winter is offset by a sustained warm front of indoor gallery celebrations bringing fabrics of perception, audacious mundanities, textile transformations, Florida Highwaymen and a rotating two-month art whirlwind touching down in midtown Bellevue.<\/p>\n

\u201cSarah Jacobs:\u00a0It\u2019s Not What It Seems\u201d on view Jan. 10-Feb. 22, opening reception Jan. 10, 5-8 p.m.\u201cIt\u2019s Not What It Seems\u201d is an apt title for painter Sarah Jacobs\u2019 new show<\/a> drawing inspiration from the holistic neoplatonic ideas of third-century Greek philosopher Plotinus and the revolutionary theories<\/a> on quantum loop gravity recently revealed by Italian physicist Carlo Rovelli.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Jacobs employs a vividly surrealistic perspective to point toward the unseen worlds we imagine lie beyond and within ourselves. \u201cI consider the qualities of separation and oneness,\u201d she says. \u201cAre we existentially isolated within our separate bodies, are we integral parts of a collective whole that we are only obliquely aware of, or are we simultaneously both?\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"\"\"Christine Bethea, Robert Qualters and Philip Rostek are featured artists in the \u201cLive \u2022 Worship \u2022 Shop\u201d series at John A. Hermann, Jr. Memorial Museum. Photos courtesy of P.J. McArdle.<\/p>\n

\u201cLive \u2022 Worship \u2022 Shop:\u00a09 Iconic Exhibits from Curator P.J. McArdle\u201d on view weekends Jan. 3-4 to Feb. 28-March 1.<\/p>\n

P.J. McArdle has pursued a longstanding personal commitment to making his wide-ranging art collection available to the public, usually with an emphasis on Pittsburgh and Western Pennsylvania artists.<\/p>\n

Starting this weekend, Jan. 3-4, his \u201cLive \u2022 Worship \u2022 Shop:\u00a09 Iconic Exhibits from Curator P.J. McArdle\u201d<\/a> will present more than 700 works by 200+ contemporary artists at the John A. Hermann, Jr. Memorial Art Museum, located just a few blocks from Bellevue\u2019s exuberant gateway \u201cLive Worship Shop\u201d sign<\/a> at Riverview Avenue and Route 65.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Saturday opening receptions run from 6-9 p.m. and are followed Sunday by viewing from 1-4 p.m. with an artist talk from 2-3 p.m. Admission to all events is free.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a reprise of his 2024 Live \u2022 Worship \u2022 Shop series that featured eight weekend shows representing a multitude of traditional and modern styles. This time, McArdle has added an extra weekend and merged other collectors and curators into the mix.<\/p>\n

The kickoff show is \u201cThe Connoisseurship of Frederick F. Braun\u201d and includes close to 100 pieces of painting, sculpture, ceramics, glassware, furniture, photography and textiles from an Edgewood resident whose collecting passion embraces art from across the globe<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"\"\"\"Collector Fred Braun views a portrait of himself done by American figurative painter and actor Arthur Hammer. Photo by P.J. McArdle.<\/p>\n

A child of Austrian immigrants, Braun grew up in Pittsburgh; his Baldwin High School class of 1955 yearbook noted he \u201chas talent to spare when it comes to art.\u201d While attending the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City, he embarked upon an art-collecting hobby that relies on the simple maxim:\u00a0 \u201cI collect whatever I fall in love with. You can find treasures if you\u2019re lucky and patient.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Braun\u2019s aesthetic sensibilities were enhanced by getting to know many artists personally, in particular trailblazing mid-20th-century Expressionists like Arthur Hammer, Robert Loughlin, Saul Lishinsky and Peter Keil.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Live \u2022 Worship \u2022 Shop features curated shows by South Side collector Eric Holmes (Jan. 17-18), former here<\/a> gallery owner Lexi Bishop (Jan. 24-25) and La Roche University art professor Sydney Pascarella (Feb. 21-22).<\/p>\n

The series includes solo exhibitions by Robert Qualters (Jan. 10-11), Christine Bethea (Feb. 7-8), Philip Rostek (Jan. 31-Feb.1) and English artists Helen Bryant and Hiliary Best (Feb. 14-15) before concluding with a salon curated by McArdle that celebrates current Pittsburgh artmakers (Feb. 28-March 1).<\/p>\n

Live \u2022 Worship \u2022 Shop is an homage to the artistic legacy of North Side businessman John Hermann Jr. (1855-1942), a self-described \u201cprofessional amateur\u201d painter who depicted early 1900s Pittsburgh scenes along with seascapes and hotels from Florida and New Jersey, re-creations of Bavarian castles and other European vistas encountered on numerous continental excursions and studies of African American life in the deep South during the 1920s.<\/p>\n

Hermann was a lifelong bachelor. According to a 1978 Pittsburgh Post-Gazette article quoting his niece, Marcella Dillman, \u201cArt was his love. He kept to himself for the most part. When he was home, he was upstairs painting.\u201d<\/p>\n

In 1939, at age 84, Hermann bought the 16-room Dewar mansion at 661 Lincoln Ave. in Bellevue (where Kuhn\u2019s Market now stands) and set about organizing his works<\/a> into a catalog. He died before finishing, leaving a will that bequeathed nearly 1,000 framed paintings to the citizens of Bellevue. In 1976, trustees bought the house at 318 Lincoln and secured a permanent home for the collection.<\/p>\n

Besides the work of its founder, the museum exhibits current artists, most recently Clyde Williams, Vicki Ivancik, Pat Salopek, Robert Huckestein, Gerald Kirner and Mark Collins.<\/p>\n

\"\"\"\"From left, new work by Austin Palmisano, Peter Missing, Riley Swatsworth (Irma Freeman Center for Imagination). Photos courtesy of Irma Freeman Center for Imagination.<\/p>\n

\u201cFabrics of Perception: Austin Palmisano, Riley Swatsworth, Peter Missing\u201d on view Jan. 2-Feb. 5, opening reception Jan. 2, 6-9 p.m.<\/p>\n

This multidisciplinary exhibit features a trio of artists intent on bridging the gap between the internal and external worlds. Austin Palmisano<\/a> mixes surrealism and stream-of-consciousness poetry; Riley Swatsworth<\/a> offers plein air-style paintings created during extended sojourns in Allegheny Cemetery.<\/p>\n

Bronx-born Peter Missing<\/a> has spent four decades making Urban Contemporary Art in New York, Berlin, Copenhagen, Crete, Denver and now Pittsburgh. His early graffiti-rooted street influences are flavored with African, Mayan and Aztec styles, and his works reside in 30 museums including the Getty Institute, Museum of Modern Art, Whitney Museum of American Art and Stadt Museum in Germany.\u00a0<\/p>\n

He\u2019s also a prolific singer-songwriter in the post-punk industrial genre and has recorded numerous albums with his bands Drunk Driving and Missing Foundation<\/a>. His latest album, \u201cOkunoshima,\u201d will be available at the Jan. 2 opening reception.<\/p>\n

\"\"\"\"\u201cThe Artist was a Minimalist Attracted to Nature\u2019s Lines but Not Its Blooms\u201d and \u201cThe Moon Was as Full as the Night Was Still\u201d by Charlee Brodsky (Phipps Conservatory) Photos by artist.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Audacity of the Mundane: An Exhibition of Artwork by Charlee Brodsky\u201d on view Jan. 9-March 15.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Visitors to the conservatory\u2019s Orchid and Tropical Bonsai Show: Blooming with Love<\/a> running Jan. 9-March 15 can stop in the Welcome Center Gallery for a concurrent exhibit of unique still-life photography by longtime Carnegie Mellon University art professor Charlee Brodsky<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u00a0\u201cAudacity of the Mundane\u201d<\/a> began with a friend\u2019s request for a simple photograph of pears, Brodsky recalls, and has grown to over 60 imaginative assemblages combining \u201crocks, pigs, balls, flowers, binder clips, rabbits, an occasional grape tomato, other miscellaneous things that I collected through the years, recently ordered on eBay and\/or picked up on the street.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a beguiling theater of everyday objects Brodsky\u2019s curation and composition invests with personality and intent. \u201cI love the dog with half a tail; I still feel sorry for the bunny that is missing a leg; and for whatever reason, I talk to the pigs. They are my perfect, imperfect collaborators with whom I create stories of innocence, joy, affectation, impending doom, hope, as well as of other conditions that I see and partake in.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"\"\"\u201cZenith\u201d by Bryan DeProspero (Spinning Plate Gallery). Photo by artist.<\/p>\n

\u201cNine Lives: Bryan DeProspero\u201d on view Jan. 2-31, opening reception Jan. 2, 5-8 p.m.<\/p>\n

Bryan DeProspero\u2019s latest paintings<\/a> are a departure from his earlier abstract style. The new series, he states, has grown from \u201cimagined landscapes\u201d infused with symbolism and personal mythologies into works that express themes of stoicism, isolation, transfiguration and mourning.<\/p>\n

\"\"\"\"\u201cOh, To be a Daffodil Dancing in the Wind\u201d by Stacey Pydynkowski (The Manos Gallery). Photo by artist.<\/p>\n

\u201cThen and Now\u201d and \u201cTextile Transformation\u201d on view Jan. 10-Feb. 27, opening receptions Jan. 10, 4-8 p.m.<\/p>\n

The Manos Gallery continues to spotlight its new Aluminum City Arts space with two exhibits.\u00a0\u201cThen and Now\u201d<\/a> spans illustration, painting, weaving and photography from Lynda Kirby, Lynn Manley, Monica Mathews, Jake Motosicky, Leah Shuck, Debra Tobin, James Tobin, Lily VanDyk, Debra Walker, Donna Weckerly and Kevin Wolford.<\/p>\n

\u201cTextile Transformation\u201d<\/a>\u00a0 features contemporary and tradition-based fiber arts creations from Bobbie Cubbage, Mary Ann Ferrin, Aileen Fisher, Katie Gablick, Leanne Longwill, Marilyn Narcey, Stacey Pydynkowski, Kari Rosland, Leah Shuck, Debra Tobin, James Tobin, Deborah Walker and Madonna Yoder.<\/p>\n

Check these art happenings, too:<\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0 Pittsburgh\u2019s longest-running visual art stroll, Unblurred: First Fridays on Penn Avenue<\/a>, returns Jan. 2, 6-10 p.m., with a lively evening of art openings, live performances, sidewalk markets and innumerable diverse food and beverage offerings along the 4800\u20135500 blocks of Penn Avenue in Bloomfield\/Garfield\/Friendship.<\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0 On Jan. 13 from 6-8 p.m. Pedantic Arts Residency<\/a> welcomes its latest residents \u2014 painter Melinda Laszczynski<\/a>, curator Erica Quinn<\/a>, writer huiyin zhou<\/a> \u2014 at a reception hosted by Headwater Media and Casey Droege Cultural Productions. The residency is a monthlong cross-disciplinary program where the artists explore Pittsburgh and its creative communities. KST Alloy Studios, 5530 Penn Ave. in East Liberty.<\/p>\n

Artists Talking about Art:<\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0 Jan. 8, 6-7 p.m. Brew House Arts presents a virtual discussion with West Virginia poet-painter Wilhelmina McWhorter<\/a>, featured in Brew House Arts\u2019 current show, \u201cOur Appalachia: Community and Visions of the Solar Ant Arts Collective,\u201d<\/a> running to Jan. 17. Register<\/a> to receive the Zoom meeting link.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"\"\"Bottom Feeder Books. Photo by Ryan McLennan. <\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0 Jan. 10, 6-8 p.m. Bottom Feeder Books hosts photographer Jacob Pesci<\/a> in conversation with Azriel Weaver; Pesci\u2019s \u201cDivine Appointments\u201d<\/a> exhibit is on view at Tomayko Foundation through Jan. 16. Bottom Feeder Books, 415 Gettysburg St., Point Breeze.<\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0 Jan. 30, 6-7:30 p.m. Photography historian and MacArthur Genius Fellow Dr. Deborah Willis presents a Black History Month Lecture drawn from her landmark book \u201cReflections in Black: A History of Black Photographers 1840 to the Present.\u201d<\/a> Tickets $5 members, $10 general admission. Heinz History Center, 1212 Smallman St., Strip District.<\/p>\n

More January openings:<\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0 Atlas:\u00a0Owen Westberg<\/a> (april april, Jan. 10)<\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0 LOT paintings:\u00a0Al Svoboda<\/a> (april april, Jan. 10)<\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0 vinaigrette:\u00a0Sasha Miasnikova and Zora Moniz<\/a> (ROMANCE, Jan. 24)<\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0 Florida Highwaymen Painters<\/a> (Westmoreland Museum of American Art, Jan. 25)<\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0 it takes a long time to stay here: Paintings by Jordan Ann Craig<\/a> (Westmoreland Museum of American Art, Jan. 25)<\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0 Hey Friend:\u00a0Ceramics by Artist-in-Residence Nikki Lau<\/a> (Pittsburgh Center for Arts & Media, Jan. 30)\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0 Joe Lupo:\u00a0Chronic Uncertainty<\/a> (Concept Art Gallery, Jan. 31)<\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0 Found:\u00a0Work by Jamie Earnest, Alli Lemon, Natalie Moffitt, Zo\u00eb Welsh<\/a> (Concept Art Gallery, Jan. 31)<\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0 The Atithi Collective: A Community Exhibition<\/a> (Atithi Studios, Jan. 31)\u00a0<\/p>\n