Eye Opening Experience: Silver Eye finds new home in artist community – Uniontown Herald Standard

Situated along Penn Avenue in downtown Pittsburgh is a community of artists.

Dance companies, studios of freelance artists, art centers are more co-exist in a creative utopia that begs for people to spend a sunny afternoon wandering in and out of each place taking in as much art as possible.

The new kid on the block, literally, is Silver Eye Center for Photography, located at 4808 Penn Ave.

This gallery that works to promote the power of contemporary photography and visual storytelling to inform, engage and inspire diverse audiences and communities, according to the gallerys mission statement.

Even though the non-profit organization will have a (re)opening celebration later this month, the gallery has been in existence since 1979.

It started as two separate entities: Blatent Image Gallery and The Silver Eye Photographic Workshop, which merged to form the Blatent Image/Silver Eye, which became Silver Eye Center for Photography in 1992.

Before moving to Penn Avenue, the center was located in the heart of Carson Street on the South Side of the city.

I think we were really looking for a neighborhood where we could do a couple of things that we couldnt do in the old gallery. We moved to the gallery in the 1980s. Photography was in a different place. Being a photography gallery you were showing 8 by 11 prints, explained Executive Director David Oresick about what prompted the gallerys move. (Now) we work with photographers that want to show really big (images) and they want to do videos. A lot of artists were working in books so it was important that we had a bookstore and a place to share and show these books. The other big thing was finding a neighborhood, finding a visual arts community. We wanted to be a part of the visual arts community, and that we really didnt have on the South Side.

According to Oresick, the new location fit the bill perfectly.

This site in particular sort of seemed like an ideal location. We had been interested in Penn Avenue in a while. This particular site, it seemed like all the stars aligned, he said.

It was the right shape and size. When I walked in I could see how it could work as a gallery. It was the right floor plan and the location was perfect. One problem we had with Carson Street was with parking. It (the new location) has more ample parking.

In addition to the physical space being perfect, the community of Penn Avenue has also been an excellent fit.

One thing that was really important to us is that we are sandwiched in the art community. They are really great with collaborating with us and we can share resources, said Oresick. We have a good relationship with the Bloomfield-Garfield Corporation (a community revitalization organization). So many things went right with the space, that it felt like the perfect spot for us.

In addition to the gallery, the brand new building also offers affordable housing on the upper floors that serves as a way for the space to give back to the community.

In order to welcome people to the gallerys new location, a special (re)opening celebration has been scheduled for June 24.

The housewarming party will be held from 6 to 8 p.m. where VIPs will share a champagne toast while noshing on big bites and drinks from local businesses. The gallery will then open for general admission from 8 to 11 p.m.

The evening will also feature a preview of Past Present Future: Western Pennsylvanias People and Places in the newly named Aaronel deRoy Gruber & Irving Gruber Gallery.

It wasnt on the schedule originally, but when we decided to go through with the move I thought we needed something for the art and photography community in Pittsburgh. The thing that is special about Silver Eye is that it has this unique history. I think it has it because of its community and these really talented and engaged artists, said Oresick. There is such a wealth of interesting and beautiful work in the region. It is pretty unique. That got me thinking that I wanted to think about the way photographers have been dealing with these hillsides and rivers and legacy of industry. We have been borrowing some of this vintage work, which I think is crucial to telling this story. How did those photographers shape photographers of today in this region? It was so much fun to dive into this work and think about how do all these artists put this landscape into their art.

After the opening reception Oresick said the gallery is looking forward to participating in the Unblurred: First Fridays event on July 7 that is a Penn Avenue gallery crawl held on the first Friday of each month and features a mixture of music, sculpture, dance, performances and more.

Silver Eyes mission is really about promoting photography as a fine art medium. One thing I always want to do is give people a greater appreciation for the art of photography, said Oresick. I want people to go away with the experience that they saw something new.

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Eye Opening Experience: Silver Eye finds new home in artist community - Uniontown Herald Standard