The Frick Art & Historical Center Presents Steel: Pittsburgh Drawings by Craig McPherson

Artist Creates Striking Beauty from Pittsburgh's Gritty Mills

PITTSBURGH, March 7 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- As part of its contribution to the celebrations surrounding Pittsburgh's 250th anniversary, the Frick Art & Historical Center will present two exhibitions in 2008 that examine the various ways the city has been depicted "on paper" by artists from the nineteenth century through the present. These exhibitions are Steel: Pittsburgh Drawings by Craig McPherson and A Panorama of Pittsburgh: Nineteenth-Century Printed Views. On March 8, 2008, Steel: Pittsburgh Drawings by Craig McPherson will open at The Frick Art Museum and remain on view through June 8. Admission to the exhibition is free.

Craig McPherson works in the urban-realist tradition, producing finely detailed, beautifully atmospheric renderings of urban and industrial environments. His preference for urban subject matter and unpopulated shadowy night scenes is reminiscent of both the Ashcan School of the early twentieth century and the cinematography of mid-twentieth-century film noir. This exhibition gathers together some of McPherson's existing Pittsburgh-related works and expands upon these industrial themes with a body of new work in graphite and pastel.

The artist is known for his murals, paintings and mezzotints, many reflecting his 30-year tenure in New York City. McPherson's work has been exhibited in solo gallery shows in New York, where he is represented by Forum Gallery, and in group shows throughout the world. His body of work includes a number of corporate and museum commissions, including a set of large murals depicting world harbor cities for the American Express Building.

Sarah Hall, the Frick's director of curatorial affairs, worked with the artist to organize an exhibition of remarkable works that provide a visual survey of many of Pittsburgh's dramatic industrial landscapes. According to Ms. Hall, this exhibition will allow us to look at the city through the eyes of a contemporary artist whose work can help us to see our environment anew or differently.

The exhibition and accompanying catalogue include more than 30 Pittsburgh-related works by McPherson, who has been interpreting the region's landscapes and industrial sites for the past twenty years.

Steel: Pittsburgh Drawings by Craig McPherson is organized by the Frick Art & Historical Center and made possible by a generous grant from The Pittsburgh Foundation.

Information regarding exhibition-related programs is available at TheFrickPittsburgh.org.