The Gift of Art: 100 Years of Art from the Pittsburgh Public Schools’ Collection

NOVEMBER 2016 – JUNE 2017 The Gift of Art exhibit featured nearly 80 paintings, as well as sculpture and other media, from the Public Schools’ collection  

For 100 years, the Friends of Art has purchased art to be given to the Pittsburgh Public Schools and enjoyed by tens of thousands of school children. Seeking to inspire an appreciation for art and a “love of the beautiful” among school students, the Friends of Art has continued their mission over the past century, building a collection that captures the evolution of art and culture in the region.

The Gift of Art exhibit, displayed in the new Barensfeld Gallery on the History Center’s fifth floor, features nearly 80 paintings, as well as sculpture and other media, from the Public Schools’ collection, including some of the first pieces purchased for the collection, as well as art created in the past decade, offering an interesting perspective on the work of regional artists, as well as what that work tells us about Pittsburgh and its people.

Works by more than 75 local artists is included in the exhibit, including Roy Hilton, Samuel Rosenberg, Malcolm Stephen Parcell, Syl Damianos, William Phafl, Adrienne Heinrich, Gregory Kavalec, and Robert Qualters, to name a few.

In the News

• Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: Pittsburgh Public Schools display ‘The Gift of Art’ at Heinz History Center
• Local Arts Pittsburgh: The Gift of Art Exhibit Takes Pittsburgh on a Fantastic Voyage
• TRIB Live: Hot Pick: Exhibit showcases ‘The Gift of Art’
• Pittsburgh City Paper: The History Center highlights a century of art donated to city schools