2006/2007 Visiting Artist Exhibitions and Mentors & Makers Exhibitions

Admission to all MCG Arts exhibitions lectures and receptions are always open to the public free of charge. Exhibitions are presented at two locations: Manchester Craftsmen’s Guild located at 1815 Metropolitan Street on Pittsburgh’s North Side and MCG@800 Penn Avenue, a satellite gallery located in the heart of downtown Pittsburgh’s Cultural District. The 2006-07 season at Manchester Craftsmen’s Guild’s Connie Kerr and North Galleries includes concurrent solo exhibitions by emerging and internationally renowned artists as well as group shows featuring the work of staff and student artists.

Connie Kerr and North Galleries at 1815 Metropolitan Street are open Monday- Friday, 9 am- 5 pm and Tuesdays until 9 pm. Exhibitions are also open for viewing during MCG Jazz concerts.

July 14 – October 15, 2006 Bill Strickland: Collected Works in Clay Connie Kerr Gallery- Collected ceramic works by Manchester Craftsmen’s Guild’s founder and CEO, Bill Strickland. Reception: Thursday, September 14th. 7:30 - 9:30.

January 26 - April 8, 2007 Art Within 20 Year Commemorative Exhibition Connie Kerr and North Galleries- This exhibition includes art works from 10 renowned visual artists who have contributed to the legacy of Manchester Craftsmen's Guild through previous exhibitions, lectures and workshops and continues an exhibition season commemorating MCG's 20th year at its current location. A variety of media is represented including drawing, printmaking, photography and sculpture. Participating artists include: Tina Brewer, Linda Connor, Jim Goldberg, Lonnie Graham, Chester Higgins, Martha Jackson Jarvis, Martha Madigan, Hugh Merrill, Joyce J. Scott, and Carrie Mae Weems. Artist Talk & Reception: Joyce J. Scott - Tuesday, January 30, 2:00 - 3:30 pm. This event is free and open to the public and is being held in conjunction with the Pittsburgh Public Schools Arts & Humanities In-Service. Support provided in part by American Eagle Outfitters Foundation. Artist Talk & Reception: Linda Connor with Lonnie Graham - Friday, March 30, 6:00 - 8:00 pm. Free and open to the public. Sponsored by California University of Pennsylvania, Pittsburgh Filmmakers and Silver Eye Center for Photography. Linda Connor will conduct workshops at California University of Pennsylvania March 26 & 27 and at Manchester Craftsmen's Guild with MCG and Pittsburgh Public Schools students March 28-30. Tina Brewer Residency: Tina Brewer will be in residency at MCG, February through March, working with students on a quilting project in the Design Arts studio. Tina Brewer’s residency is made possible through the Arts in Education Partnership of the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, administered regionally by Pittsburgh Center for the Arts.

July 13 - September 2, 2007
Beaded Prayers: A Community Art Making Project Directed by Sonya Clark
Reception: Thursday, July 26, 6:30 - 8:00 p.m.
The Beaded Prayers Project is a worldwide community art collaboration that showcases over 4,000 beaded prayers created by people ages six to ninety of diverse backgrounds from 35 countries worldwide. Inspired by African Diaspora traditions of wearing amulets for protection, health and power, Clark developed the project as a way to connect with people through art outside of her own studio work and to create an artwork that belongs equally to all of its participants.

MCG staff, students, friends and family have the opportunity to make a beaded prayer to add to the traveling exhibit at Family Day on Friday, July 27th.

September 7 - October 31, 2007
Summer Studios & Staff Show
Reception: Thursday, September 20, 5:30 - 8:00 p.m.
Includes works in ceramics, photography, and digital and design arts created during MCG’s five-week intensive summer courses for teenaged youth. Also features pieces by the Guild’s professional staff and teaching artists. Join us on the evening of September 20th for an exhibition reception including food and the chance to meet the artists!

Mentors & Makers @ 800 Penn Avenue

Manchester Craftsmen's Guild maintains a satellite gallery in the heart of the downtown cultural district. This venue serves as the base of operations for an ongoing exhibition program entitled Mentors and Makers. In addtion to exhibiting works created in the MCG studios, a series of exhibtions that highlight the work of teachers and students in Pittsburgh Public Schools will appear each month. If you are a teacher interested in scheduling a future exhibition, please contact Heather Powell at (412) 322-1773, ext. 196.

Mentor, Fiona Wilson and Maker, Natalie Larocco exhibit panoramic photographs which were created by shooting multiple exposures with a Holga camera which was switched back and forth between to converge both artists’s influences.

Interactive installation with video. Participants are immersed in the aesthetic of the 8-bit video game generationa nd teh simple, good-versus-evil morality fo epic fantasy role-playing games.

April 20 - May 14, 2007
From Clay to Play : A Mentors & Makers Exhibition
MCG instructor Jamie Matthews and Students from MCG’s after school arts program.
MCG @ 800 Penn Avenue
Reception: April 20, 5:30 - 9:00 pm

International glass artist, Therman Statom works with MCG students to create a glass installation.

This photographic exhibition explores questions of personal identity and origin through visual representation of personal mementos. The artists created digital images by scanning objects that they felt symbolized important parts of their personal history.

Ana Tsulahres, a junior at Pittsburgh Schenley, explores her transition into womanhood by using jewelry that belongs to her mother and grandmother. Kirsten McLaughlin, a sophomore at Pittsburgh Schenley, reflects on the childhood experiences of her family by depicting three generation of teddy bears. Dror Yaron connects to his ethnic roots through images of food.

Thanks to the Pittsburgh branch of Konica Minolta Business Solutions USA, Inc., a copy machine will be placed in the gallery for visitors to use to create their own scanned images!

Dror Yaron is the Photography Studio Coordinator at MCG. He studied at the International Center of Photography in New York and has exhibited in galleries, museums and alternative venues both nationally and internationally.

An installation inspired by the sights and sounds of the Jacquard loom. Decode 2 features digital weavings created by MCG students during a three-day workshop with sound and textile artist Christy Matson.

Christy Matson is a weaver who utilizes both hand-operated and industrial Jacquard looms. By connecting her weaving to pressure-sensitive circuits that generate sound when touched, Matson explores ways to imitate human experience and perception through art.