Oliver Lake at City of Asylum’s Jazz-Poetry Concert in September 2013; photo by Renee Rosensteel

Updates
The Artway is about creating spaces and opportunities for diverse neighbors to gather and where literature and art challenge and inspire us all to re-imagine and make a better home together.

This month, we have been busy laying the groundwork for our first community-based, multi-disciplinary artist residency—the first phase of which will take place in January. The residency will bring internationally acclaimed composer and saxophonist Oliver Lake into the Northside community for a period of two weeks to gather stories and materials that will form the basis of a new musical work. Subsequent phases of the residency throughout 2014 will bring Oliver back to the Northside to continue work on the new piece with the community whose stories it seeks to tell. We will be working with Young Men’s and Women’s African Heritage Association, the Coalition for Fair Housing, Mexican War Streets Association, the YMCA, Central Northside Neighborhood Council and Kente Arts to gain participation from as many Northsiders as possible.

Recent Wins
POP City feature on how public art is changing the urban landscape

Local producer Jose Muniain created this video about City of Asylum for the annual convention of Americans for the Arts.

This NPR audio feature, produced by WESA-FM, introduces Pittsburgh residents to the Artway.

Insight/Provocation
Engaging with community in a creative endeavor offers opportunities to build coalitions that cross-racial, socio-cultural, age and other demographic lines. We believe this series of residencies that will launch with Oliver Lake’s January visit will make important contributions to the ongoing conversation about who we are and what our community values.