Silk Screen Opens Tonight

Silk Screen Executive Director Harish Saluja has been growing the festival since its inception six years ago. This year the ten-day event features thirty-two films from nearly a dozen countries. Many of the screenings also include a lecture or question and answer session. “The biggest value which we can add is to have a person from that film be present and do a presentation or a question and answer,” said Saluja. The goal is to eventually have a speaker at every session but according to Saluja the budget simply will not allow it this year.

The films will be shown at the Melwood Screening Room, The Harris Theater and the Regent Square Theater. The final film will be shown at the Andy Warhol museum and an opening night gala is set for the William Penn Hotel.

An international jury chose the films with the only criteria being that the movie had to have Asian ties and be good. “It is difficult to define what a good film is,” said Saluja, but paraphrasing a well known Supreme Court ruling, he said, “I know one when I see one.”

“There is nothing like this for hundreds of miles so our hope is that this will bring focus to Pittsburgh as an international city and as a place where we do respect and honor diversity,” said Saluja. The group also sees this as both a short term and long term economic booster. Hotel nights and meal purchases by out of town attendees help the economy immediately according to Saluja but he sees a much bigger picture. “The road to the future goes through Asia. India and China cannot be ignored. We need to know about these countries, do business with them, learn about them,” said Saluja, “One of the things we are not doing enough is to have a cultural understanding of these countries.”

Silk Screen in recent years has branched out beyond the springtime festival. The group sponsors several other Asian-related film screenings and social events throughout the year and has plans to build an Asia Culture and Commerce Center.

A full list of films can be found on here.

Banff Films to Kick Off Outdoor Season

Extreme white water kayaking followed by base jumping and then some relaxing fly-fishing. While it might sound like a busy vacation in the Rockies, it is actually a description of a day’s worth of films coming to Pittsburgh this weekend.

Venture Outdoors opens its annual screening of Banff Film Festival movies Friday. “The weather is starting to get nice, we’ve already seen our first 70 degree day, and what we really want is for this festival to get outside,” says Venture Outdoors Event Coordinator Seth Gernot. “You know, plan that crazy adventure, plan that fun time that you are going to do in the upcoming summer.”

The annual film festival in Banff, Alberta Canada shows films that all have to do with mountain culture. “Meaning extreme sport or it can be something like trying to save a wild river for salmon in Alaska,” says Gernot. The films are usually also extremely visually appealing.

The festival in its original form includes about 300 films. Festival organizers then pare that down to about 30 films for a world tour and further whittle down each film into a shortened version so several can be shown each night. Venture Outdoors will show six of the shortened films each day of the three-day festival in Pittsburgh. “We have requested a third [day] from the Banff folks for a couple of years and just with how tight their schedule is they couldn’t give it to use so we were very happy to find out that we had a third day this year,” says Gernot.

The fest in Pittsburgh began several years ago in the Homestead Library and has grown every year ever since. This year it will be held at the Byham Theater.

Films on free climbing, caving and long boarding (downhill skateboarding) will also be shown. Each evening’s program will run about two and a half hours with a 20-minute intermission.

Ticket information and a full listing of the films can be found at the Venture Outdoors website.

Pittsburgh Young Musicians at Monterey Jazz Festival

In Pittsburgh's Hazelwood neighborhood, the desire to help empower a community has resulted in a group of young musicians representing Pittsburgh at the Monterey Jazz Festival's upcoming Next Generation Festival. As part of our occasional series "This Musical City," DUQ’s Bob Studebaker spoke with Tim Smith, the founder of The Center of Life, and two of the musicians in the band.

Listen to the report

Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre and August Wilson Center Collaborate

The Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre and the August Wilson Center for African American Culture today announced a three-year partnership that will include performances, workshops and reciprocal dance instruction.

The August Wilson Center’s president and CEO Andre Kimo Stone Guess says the seven executives of cultural district institutions meet every month, and this cooperative effort with the Ballet Theatre is one result. Guess says he's not aware of any other city with the same high level of cooperation among artistic groups.

Greer Reed Jones, founding Artistic Director for the August Wilson Center, says the collaboration is coming out of a real dance boom in Pittsburgh, with young companies forming and individual projects taking shape.

In February, 2012, the ballet will perform “Uncommon Baroque” a contemporary mixed repertoire with live music of Bach, Brahms and Beethoven in the August Wilson Center’s 486-seat theater. Choreographer Dwight Rhoden will choreograph an original work to music by Bach.

One of Andre Kimo Stone Guess’s visions is instruction in either ballet or modern dance at either institution available to children from an early age through CAPA through Point Park College and, without leaving Pittsburgh, into a world class dance ensemble.

Carnegie Museum of Art opens “Ordinary Madness”

For some it may seem like a trip down memory lane, for others it will be a gallery full of new discoveries but CMOA Associate Curator of Contemporary Art, Dan Byers says for him it is look at the everyday and finding it laced with the surreal, the uncanny and the extraordinary. The show “Ordinary Madness” highlights those juxtapositions by using pieces in the museum’s archives. “Some of them have not been on display for years,” says Byers. However, he says visitors may recognize some of the works from past internationals and from the rotating contemporary art collection housed in the Scaif Galleries. Byers says the show grew out of an interest in finding ways to sustain the city’s energy and engagement with contemporary art outside of the internationals. To put together the show Byers says he was able to “dig deep into the holdings.” Some of that was done by looking at pictures saved on computers but at other times he had to go down into the bowels of the museum to look at the works first hand. Byers says he found enough material to do the show “two or three times over” and he may launch a similar show some time in the future. Like many museums, CMOA is looking for new ways to use its archives and Byers says this is a great way to depart from the chronological perspective taken in the Scaif gallery. This show looks at works from 1945 to the present and includes paintings, sculpture, photography and video.

The show, which runs through January 9, will include two evenings of film screenings. The first runs from 6pm to 7:30pm October 22 and brings together works that focus on the irrational, ambivalent, and chaotic aspects of everyday experience and pop-culture phenomena. The second runs November 10, 6–7:30 p.m. and will highlight the junction between art and life and investigate the divide between reality and its distortion in myth, desire, and individual perception.

To help visitors through the exhibition, the museum has produced a fully illustrated, free “pocket guide,” containing color reproductions of many of the artworks on view and essays by Byers and other museum employees.

Listen to an interview with Dan Byers here.

Festival of Lights

Pittsburgh’s fourth annual Festival of Lights starts at dusk on Friday and will run every evening until midnight through October 17th in the Cultural District under the auspices of the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust, with support from Duquesne Light.

Festival of Lights Director Marguerite Jarrett Marks says U.K. artist Ross Ashton has designed four major installations that form a lighting trail between the David L. Lawrence Convention Center and the back of Heinz Hall. "Old Bones" at Mahla Office Furniture echoes the Carnegie Museum's dinosaur collection and "Splendors" on the Convention Center refers to "Vatican Splendors", which opens October 2nd at the Heinz History Center. Ashton has also put a waterfall titled "Cascade" on Heinz Hall and a tranquil piece called “Hope” on the Catholic Charities Building on 9th Street.

Local artists, including CMU drama students, have designed a series of storefront projects along the way.

The concentrated footprint makes it easy to see all the installations on foot, stopping by restaurants and theaters, but there will be pedicabs available, and Molly’s Trolleys is offering a tour.

Arts Festival Brings Green Message Downtown

The Three Rivers Arts Festival began in downtown Pittsburgh today.

The festival is weaving together several themes, including environmentalism and the interaction of the arts and technology.

Pittsburgh Cultural Trust spokeswoman Lauren Bracey says it’s a great coincidence that World Environment Day will happen during the festival.

“We didn’t have to become a green festival; we already were a green festival,” says Bracey.

She says for the past few years, the Three Rivers Arts Festival has sorted recyclables from trash and compost. Bracey says last year, more than 50 tons of garbage were recycled or composted, instead of being put in the trash stream.

Bracey says Guster, one of today’s most environmentally engaged bands, will play tomorrow night. Other music acts include the Dirty Dozen Brass Band on Sunday, the Venezuelan disco group Los Amigos Invisibles on Wednesday, and songwriter Kris Kristofferson on Friday night.

About 320 different artists will showcase their work in the artists’ market over the course of the festival. Bracey says the festival board also responded to patrons’ demand for more visual arts by bringing back a juried exhibition at the Trust Arts Education Center on Liberty Avenue.

Visit the Arts Festival website for more information.

Gourlay Brings Expertise to River City Brass Band

James Gourlay started playing the tuba when he was ten years old.

“Because the school janitor found a tuba in the attic of the school. I was forced to play it basically because I was really bad at soccer, and nobody would have me on their team.”

Now he’s a world-famous musician and the newly-appointed Music Director of the River City Brass band.

Gourlay says after giving 12 concerts with the band this March, it was an easy choice when he was offered the position.

The Scotland native says the brass band is one of the most flexible ensembles in music.

“The River City Brass Band is capable of playing anything from jazz and pop to much more serious and contemporary music,” says Gourlay. “So I’ll be trying, in my role as Director of Music, to balance the programs so that if you come to one of our concerts, you’ll hear something you really love.”

Gourlay says he’s already made a great relationship with both the band and the city of Pittsburgh.

First Night Downtown

About 25,000 people are expected at first night being held in the Cultural District Downtown. Many streets are shut down and there will be over 100 cultural events held in about fifty places, including music and dance performances. At 6pm and at midnight there will be fireworks shows. People were out and about by 6pm.

North Side resident Lance Chimka was there with his three year old daughter. He said "the vitality of the streets" on first night made the experience particularly fun.

Pictured are instruments from an interactive percussion zoo at The August Wilson Center and 2010 cupcakes from Dozen bake shop.

Children’s Museum Earns National Award

Every year the Institute of Museum and Library Services honors 5 libraries and 5 museums with a National Medal for Museum and Library Service. The Award has been described as the highest honor in the library and museum community. Among this year’s prizewinners is the Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh. Museum Executive Director Jane Werner says she was surprised and humbled by the award announced today. The Museum was nominated by a staffer and Werner says when they cut the cake to celebrate, “They get the big icing rose on top.” Werner says the museum was chosen for its commitment to the community. She says often Museums don’t “get outside their walls… but we feel we need to be agents of change in the community.” The award comes with a $10,000 cash prize and an opportunity to present at a national museum and library conference in Washington. Werner says she will focus on the museum’s many community projects including their afterschool programs, the Head Start partnership with the Pittsburgh Public School District, and the “Charm Bracelet Project.” The project brings together 17 different cultural, educational, and recreational organizations on the North Shore to work together to “transform traditional understandings of how institutions make community impact.” Werner says her vision of the future has Pittsburgh know worldwide as “Kidsburgh.” She says, “wouldn’t it be great, the next time the G20 comes here, they come here because we are such a great place for children.” Werner says along with a small gathering for staff and board members the cash will be used to extend their mission.

Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra Feeling Economic Crunch

The Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra (PSO) has been forced to restructure nine positions within its administrative staff as a result of the floundering economy. The PSO's endowment has dropped about 30 percent over the past year. President and CEO Lawrence Tamburri says donations and ticket sales have likewise dropped. Cost cutting measures have already saved the group about $150,000 and projections show the restructuring will save about $400,000 per year. Despite financial stress, the orchestra will continue its regularly scheduled shows and tours. None of the restructured positions involved musicians.

August Wilson Center offers Fellows Program

The August Wilson Center, for the first time, is offering a Fellows Program for passionate artists of African descent. Shay Wafer, vice president of programs, said the program is designed for artists who work in media arts, music composition and performance, performance-based arts and visual arts. Interested applicants choose a self-identified project to work on over a one-year period, which the Wilson Center will provide each fellow with stipend and support both administratively and creatively. Wafer said it’s a bright future for Pittsburgh artists, to give the option of staying instead of going elsewhere to study.

Wafer said there are two information sessions being held for those who want to find out more and how to apply. The first session is on Thurs, Dec. 4, 5:30pm, at Gallery 209/9, located at 209 Ninth St., Downtown. The other session is on Sat, Dec. 6, 12pm, at the Kelly-Strayhorn Theater, located at 5941 Penn Avenue, East Liberty. Also, Wafer can be contacted at swafer@AugustWilsonCenter.org for more information.