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Exhibition: Refugium – UnSmoke Systems

June 16, 2023 @ 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm

|Recurring Event (See all)

An event every week that begins at 6:00 pm on Sunday and Saturday, repeating until June 30, 2023

re·fu·gi·um

noun
an area in which a population of organisms can survive through a period of unfavorable conditions

Frick Park was once the private estate of Henry Clay Frick, industrialist and robber baron, who donated the land – or gave it back – to the city of Pittsburgh, apparently reluctantly, on his death in 1919. They say you can still see the outlines of the tees and fairways of his golf course in the fields below Beechwood Boulevard. Nowadays, Frick Park is still a playground, of sorts, only not private. Frick Park today is a community space. It is a woodland and a wetland; it is playing fields and bike trails. It is a refuge from urban living, and a home for wildlife. Frick Park is one square mile, rolling downhill from Squirrel Hill to Regent Square, and south from Point Breeze to Swissvale. As a place of recreation and refuge, it is not unlike many urban parks across the United States. And, as Pittsburghers will tell you, it is unique.

Like many people in the spring of 2020, as conditions were becoming increasingly unfavorable, I found myself, unexpectedly, with time to spare. Much of that time I spent in Frick Park, which became a kind of refuge from the turmoil of the world outside. Though I had thought I was fairly familiar with it, over the months and then years that followed, the park offered a series of frequent, small revelations; a continually changing landscape, simultaneously predictable and surprising, delicate and overbearing, managed and wild. The photographs in this exhibit represent at least a partial reflection of my experience of the park as it continues to unfold. I suspect it will never end, but here is where I am right now.

About the Artist:
Brian Cohen is a Pittsburgh-based photographer and teacher, specializing in documentary and editorial photography. Brian studied at the Royal College of Art, where he earned his Master’s degree in photography. He is the founder and director of The Documentary Works (TDW), an ad hoc collaborative project bringing together photographers, designers, and other creative people who wish to create justice-oriented photographic content.

Brian spends most of his time in Frick Park, returning occasionally to his home in Squirrel Hill.

Opening reception: Thursday, June 15, 5-8pm.
Free and open to all.

Refugium on display through June by appointment only by emailing unsmoke@gmail.com

2023-0566

 

Details

Date:
June 16, 2023
Time:
6:00 pm - 8:00 pm
Event Category:
Event Tags:
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Website:
http://unsmokeartspace.com/index#/refugium/

Venue

UnSmoke Systems Airspace
1137 Braddock Avenue
Braddock, PA 15104 United States
View Venue Website

Organizer

UnSmoke Systems Airspace
Email:
unsmoke@gmail.com
View Organizer Website