Passports to become ART PEOPLE PGH

After years of working as Passports: The Art Diversity Project, the two grassroots organizers--Christine Bethea and  Brenda Brown-- are going to redirect their artistic roots. Over the last several years, the group has been focused mainly on arts administration, concentrating on special events such as the Geek Art/Green Innovator's Festival @ Unblurred on Penn Avenue, which they produced and which has had a successful six year run.

Said Bethea, one of Passport's former principals," We are looking forward to being what we are first and foremost: Artists. We want to get back to creating art ourselves, and in particular expanding by doing more public art and utilizing other established and emerging artists. Joining the Bethea and Brown as a lead artist, will be Hill District icon, George Gist who, since 1967 has created murals and other art in several rust belt cities including Pittsburgh and Detroit. Gist's work on the New Granada is one of the city's first public mural projects.

"We feel George, his art, music and history bring a lot of dimension to the group," said Brown.

Gist with his Mural on the Granada in the Hill District

FOUR MORE YEARS!

GA/GI or the Geek Art/Green Innovator's Festival has grown to become the main event that Passports Art Diversity Project (PADP) produces, held in April of every year as part of Unblurred on Penn. Now up four years from our first, we are now directing, GA/GI 5! Visit here.

Passports will be hosting their annual meeting this December to look at other events and possibilities to benefit Pittsburgh's artists.

3rd Big Year for Geek Art / Green Innovator's Festival! "Jump" to 2012

Try our video maker at Animoto.

Once again, Passports/ARTica in partnership with Penn Avenue Arts presents GA/Festival! Our 3rd big year...learn about it here.

Hitting It Out of the Park

The evening of Thursday, August 18, Passports was proud to deliver a quilt created by Christine Bethea to the Roberto Clemente Museum curated by photographer, Duane Reider.. It took one year to complete the work. Both the museum and Ms. Bethea's organization Passports are supported by Pittsburgh Gateways.

Adding tech assistance were artists, Brenda Brown and Susan Constanse. To see other work by Ms. Bethea, an award winning quilter, registered with the Heinz History Center, visit Quilter's Candy.

Passports/ARTica Ends and Begins Another Great Year!

We're proud of all our accomplishments in 2010. Some of the best being the creation of Pennsylvania's first Eco, Art and Tech Festival--GA/GI (pronounced GAH-gee) as a key event of  World Environment Day. Our Green Team helped a number of emerging artists move forward in their careers.through exhibiting and doing demos at the event. This year, in addition to the festival, we've teamed up with Pittsburgh Gateways to build a fiberarts business that will produce a series of fiberart quilts based on the history of Pittsburgh's Hill District. And  we're working with the Roberto Clemente Museum to complete a quilt for fundraising. Meanwhile the ARTIca shop will be totally overhauled by Grove City Student Sam Perry. We've put out a call for  artists to program it for the upcoming year, looking forward to showcasing  fiberartist Cathleen Bailey in June with an exhibition called "Sparkle."So many great ideas! We'll keep you posted.

Passports/Artica to Host Grove City College and Sam Perry for SamSamLand Exhibition in April 2011 @ GA/GI Festival

"Welcome To SamSamland: Don't Wear Black to My Funeral" will be a gallery and music event curated by Sam Perry of Grove City University. SamSamland's key focus is the balance between celebrating and mourning life. This will be done through the exploration of trauma and its effect on the individual and community. SamSamland serves as a freeing space for victims of trauma and their family and friends as well as an educational experience for all those involved. Recycled materials will be used for all of the pieces, showing that beauty can be created out of everyone's damaged goods. For more information, check out samsamland's blog or search "Welcome to SamSamland" on Facebook.

LIFE Pittsburgh and Passports Green Art Projects

Passports has been working with Life Pittsburgh for three years to produce art created from recycled items! Seniors have stamped vintage fabric, rolled paper beads made of magazines and wrapping paper, repurposed old string, sewed, pasted and collaged their way into producing many incredible works of art for the walls and common spaces of several local senior day cares. Other Life Centers hosting art by Passports are in the Hill District and on the North Shore. The Organization founders, Christine Bethea and Brenda Brown, have plans to work with other companies that cater to the senior population in the region, in the near future.

Shown here: Panels gracing the dining room of Life's Senior Center in Green Tree.

Passports is Looking for Artists

Think you've got a show??? Let us know! $100 bucks gets you in our window and on a wall as a guest artist for Unblurred. You may be the next Picasso! Send images to passports.art@gmail.com

For several months now, Passports has been the principal planner of the Geek Art/Green Innovators event, which will be Pittsburgh's First Art and Technology Festival! We're proud to be hosting this ground-breaking project and have enjoyed meeting the working with some of the city's finest innovators in the green and technology industries. Hope to seen you there! For more information, click here.

Passports is Publishing Update!

Passports first book of events is now available! It begins in the summer of 2008 with the success of ARTini in the Penn Avenue Arts District and documents a full year of promoting and supporting some of Pittsburgh's finest artists. Photos of all the people, events and exhibitions! Are YOU in there? Click on the book cover for more!

PASSPORTS: The...

Celebrating the di...

By Volume 1

Book Preview

ARTica goes to the Movies!

Lionsgate has informed us that a poster done for us by a former La Roche Student, will be part of a background scene in the new Russell Crowe movie being shot here in

Pittsburgh for the next several months titled The Next Three Days.

Apparently Crowe is in the Pittsburgh T-station, averting disaster while our poster looks on from the wall....cool. We'll let you know if we get on the poster's social calendar!

UPCOMING PASSPORTS/ARTica EVENTS + Classes at Storefront U

Passports/ARTica hosts: "This November, It's all about December!"
Following "Look Pumpkin, winter is coming" ....Now through November 30, enjoy the end-of-season sales and clearances on home-grown art, unique antiques and curious collectibles @ ARTica plus tons coming into the store for the holidays!


Sign up for Fall Classes @ ARTica's "Store Front University"


DEC THE HALLS with Origami! Thursday, Dec 3 7-9 p.m.
A workshop with local artist, Susan Constanse. Make decorative boxes for small gifts or ornaments for your tree. Cost $6 per person
Register by e-mail: passports.art@gmail.com




THANKS FOR MAKING OUR COOKING CLASSES A SUCCESS!

Culinary Arts--Cold Cooking.... In this series of 4 classes, East End Chefs show you how to prepare Great foods as the weather chills. Mondays in October.

October 5. First class-- "Autumn BBQ" with Chef TJ from Z-Best , 6 to 8 p.m. $7 per class gets you a seat, a beverage and food samples. ---class completed, next class 10/12



October 12, "My Fav Marinades." Vegan Chef Steve Harlow from Brillo Box gives salads some edge and shows how to take Tofu from Wimpy to Awesome with his "Take Another Look at Tofu!" Bring a notebook!

October 19, Charles Smith of the Culinary Artists Catering Group prepares Thai Curry Pumpkin Bisque and Warm Wild Mushroom Salad with crumbled Goat Cheese.

October 26, Executive Chef, Mike Flom from the Sausalido restaurant in Bloomfield comes to ARTica to show you how to prepare an easy Napa Valley dish for the holidays.

Sew, You Want to Make a Quilt Ages 18+

(TBA in January 2010)

Make a quilt--Break the rules! CreateImprov Log Cabins your way! Design your instruction time around our flexible schedule!

Bring fabric assortment or cotton clothing, needle thread and scissors; some fabric supplied. $20 person or buddy program 2/$35
Chat and bond for free! Bring snacks and beverages for your comfort;
(includes follow-up classes in coming weeks to check your progress, and help you complete your quilt; Plus opportunity to join our ARTica quilt show for Mother's day in May 2010!)

To resister by e-mail or to ask questions: passports.art@gmail.com

AHA-Moments By Christine

On Friday July 7, 2009 from 7:00 PM-10PM, ARTica Gallery @ 5110 Penn Avenue hosts:

AHA-Moments By Christine, a one-woman exhibition featuring the work of ARTica Gallery Director, Christine McCray-Bethea, who will showcase quirky, funky but always friendly salvage and fiber art from her African(American) Mask and Religion-at-glance series as well as her quilts and works on paper. Plus explore more art, antiques and collectibles to buy as you enjoy the usual fun, food, music and mixing! http://www.passportsart.blogspot.com/ Visit our newest blog! http://www.seengreenpgh.blogspot.com/

LESS is MORE 2: The Little Art Show--EXPANDED-- Work by Constanse, Gyre, Gregio, Kemp, Strovers, Bethea, Weirzbowski and Fair!

Join us @ ARTica on Friday, July 3 for Less is MORE--EXPANDED. Our show which debuted last month was so much fun, we're expanding it into July. Come find out the real meaning of downsize! Our four featured artists represent a mix of mediums from femo to found objects. And we're adding the art of Christine Bethea, Richard Weirzbowski, a regular at ARTica, a return of Rene Fair from last fall's "Art Seen" and as promised in January--there's more of Robert Strovers! It shows to go ya that thinking small isn't such a bad idea. Also try some small art for yourself and add it to our "Gallery on Demand" Come enjoy another great evening of music, munchies, friends and all that! It's all @ ARTica from 7 pm to 10 pm, 5110 Penn Avenue 15224.

McCormack Baron Salazar Inc. and Passports' Diversity Project Nominated for Work of Art Award

Passports: The Art Diversity Project is proud to announce its "finalist" title along with real estate developers, McCormack, Baron, Salazar, Inc. bestowed by the Greater Pittsburgh Arts Council. Only three such arts and business collaborations in the city were nominted for the "Work of Art" Award. The two have partnered for the last few years in placing work by local artists in the community spaces of McCormack, Baron and Salazar's buildings and leasing offices throughout Pittsburgh. The two entities have been nominated for the success of their collaborations, which include building one of the largest privately owned collections of local art by a developer in the city of Pittsburgh.

"It's been great working with such an innovative company," said Christine Bethea, Passports' Director. "They've shown what business and arts can do, if they just shake hands."

A Bullish Night @ ARTica's May "Unblurred"

Quilts, Art and Other Women's Work: An Exhibition and "Artonomic" Stimulus Sale--Featuring RED BULL Energy Drinks and National Contest Information

A little Bull never hurt anybody! Join us for Friday, May 1st, 2009 Unblurred on Penn Avenue and get details on how to enter Red Bull's design competiton called ART OF CAN (more details at)>http://diggingpitt.blogspot.com/ Also enjoy our art exhibit of quilts and art work by Susan Constanse, Christiane D and Amy Kerlin. We'll also unveil the winning logo designed by La Roche graphics students. ( See below) It's all @ ARTica! 5110 Penn Avenue.

La Roche Students Ace Passports/ARTica "Exam"

Not long after Passports found a home at ARTica, La Roche College gave our fledgling organizations a makeover with logos and a new advertising campaign through a 72 hour competition among students in their graphics and design department, Called "Immersions" the program gives students real life work experience. Here, the winning team, "The Throwbacks" with left to right: Steve Mauro, Lindsay Tichenor, Anthony Atwood (team captain); Krish Mohan and Don Willow. Look for the winning logo and other student work at the Unblurred first Friday art crawl on May, lst @ ARTica!

See it Again, Yunz!

"SEEING PITTSBURGH"
(RE)Opens March 6, 2009
@ ARTica Art and Antiques
5110 Penn Avenue 7-9:30 pm
during Unblurred Art Crawl

The "eastern" Segments of "Seeing Pittsburgh" which ran through January 31, 2009 in celebration of Pittsburgh's 250th anniversary at the Rivers of Steel at the Bost Building, is coming to the ARTica Gallery thanks to the Passports Project! Originally, "Seeing Pittsburgh" showcased 44 Pittsburghers from eleven neighborhoods who, armed with cameras and the instructions to show us what defines their community, photographed the good, the bad, the new, the old, the physical, the emotional... and everything that defined their neighborhood. Come to Penn Avenue's Unblurred Art Crawl event on March 6 from 7-10 p.m and see it all again! ARTica is proud to host segments of the show which include, Bloomfield, Lawrenceville, Squirrel Hill, Point Breeze and the Hill District. The exhibit is up Thurdsays through Saturdays until March 28, 2009, or by appt.

Construction as Canvas

Passports is assisting the Office of Public Art in coordinating a special art opportunity for Hill District or Uptown Youth Groups called Construction as Canvas for the
Sports & Exhibition Authority. Check back with us to see how artists can get involved, too. Also don't miss an opportunity to have your art seen 365/24-7 on the Artist Listserv!