the Works of Art

the Focus Works of Art

Each year, Gateway to the Arts selects three performances or visual works of art to feature at the Institute and as part of the Partnership for the year. These works have been selected as the Focus Works of Art for 2010 - 2011 and will be featured at the Institute this August, 2010.

Brazilian Jazz - Lilly Abreu and Trio

Lilly Abreu is one of Brazil’s greatest cultural assets, a versatile artist with numerous appearances as a recitalist and soloist with orchestras and chamber ensembles in France, Spain, Portugal, Argentina, United States and Brazil.

She is on the roster of the Pittsburgh Opera and is also an accomplished popular music artist, performing regularly some of the greatest tunes of the Brazilian repertoire. She has just released a CD of Brazilian Popular Songs entitled BRASILEIRA, and with the Grammy nominated string quartet Cuarteto Latinoamericano, she recorded the CD BOSSA.

Lilly currently teaches Voice at Carnegie Mellon University and Portuguese at the University of Pittsburgh. She received her Bachelor’s of Music from Federal University of Goiás (Brazil) and a Master’s in Voice Performance from Carnegie Mellon University.

Photograph by Eliezer Barros and Amy Rodgers

Photograph by Charles "Teenie" Harris

Charles “Teenie” Harris (1908-1989) began documenting life in his hometown of Pittsburgh, especially the vibrant Hill District, in the 1930s. His body of work spans forty years and is one of the most in-depth photographic records of African-American life in the 20th century.

Charles “Teenie” Harris, American, 1908-1998, Group portrait of 1952 city of Pittsburgh marbles champ Joseph Parker wearing crown in center, runner-up Melvin Lewis on left, and director of Manchester Recreation Center Stephan Bodnar on right, leaning over marbles on floor, May 1952, black-and-white, Kodak safety film, Carnegie Museum of Art, Heinz Family Fund, 2001.35.6461.

R.A.M. (random accumulated memories) - Attack Theatre

Commissioned by the Three Rivers Arts Festival and Gateway to the Arts, “R.A.M.” is a new contemporary dance work that tells a story of Ram and his rush to recover lost memories. When his circuits crash, Ram relies on his network of friends (Url, Surge, Giga, and Flash) to help reformat the scrambled bits and bytes of his past. Attack Theatre creates a physically dynamic dance environment that is appropriate for audiences of all ages. www.attacktheatre.com

Photograph by Martha Rial

Past Works of Art

New this year! Now returning teachers are able to choose selected Works of Art from previous Institutes, provided they have not used it recently for a Unit of Study.

Tom Breiding and Spilling Ink Project are two of the three Focus Works for the 2009-2010 school year that will be available in the future.

Steeltown

Tom Breiding

Tom currently tours and performs as a member of three different bands and as a solo artist, has produced five albums for his independent label AmeriSon Records, conducts regular songwriting workshops, and has performed his material in venues from Times Square to Ventura Boulevard, and in more than 100 schools in recent months. Tom's recent critically acclaimed release The Unbroken Circle: Songs of the West Virginia Coalfields spent sixteen weeks in the top 100 on the AMA Chart. In 2008 he was commissioned by Calliope to celebrate Pittsburgh's 250th anniversary by producing, recording and writing many of the songs on the release When We Shine: Fifteen Songs About Pittsburgh.

Samhita: Conversations in Dance

Spilling Ink Project

India-based dancer Nalini Prakash and Vijay Palaparty, from Washington, DC, present Samhita: Conversations in Dance, a work based in the South Indian classical dance form, Bharatanatyam. Samhita means 'joining' or 'collecting' in India's classical language, Sanskrit. Audiences will witness the duet artistically converse in the kinetic, linear Bharatanatyam form while also using intricate hand gesture and facial expression languages. They will tell rich stories of Hindu deities through a presentation woven with moving rhythms and colorful music in the classical South Indian Carnatic form.

More Works of Art

We've also selected a few favorite Works of Art from past Institutes for the convenience of teachers.

Vessel from Middle Passage

David MacDonald

David MacDonald, potter and retired Syracuse University ceramics professor, creates a wide variety of work including vessels for daily use and one-of-a-kind pieces for exhibition.

He draws much of his inspiration from the myriad examples of surface decoration that are manifested in the many ethnic groups of sub-Saharan Africa (such as pottery decoration, textiles, body decoration, and architectural decoration).

MacDonald's work spans the complete spectrum of ceramic forms of a utilitarian nature.

Gateway Arts in Education Partnership

It starts with a work of art.