Pittsburgh

This is the Kaufmann's Clock, a beautiful old 2500 lb solid bronze clock that has been hanging from the Kaufmann's Department Store building, at the intersection of Smithfield and Fifth Ave since 1913. It has long stood as a get-together landmark, on several occasions even serving as a place for a couple to get married. Its strongest memory in the hearts of Pittsburghers though, is its innate attachment to the Kaufmann's Department Store that had rooted it as a prominent piece in the Christmas experience of generations of Pittsburghers; the clock would loom large overhead as people young and old came to shop in the center of the city, or even to just gawk at the elaborate window displays lining the city streets nearby, flush with mechanical trains toys of all varieties. These days, the Kaufmann Building sits empty...but the clock, and all it represents, stays firmly in place, a historic landmark celebrating a bygone era.

Another of the photographs taken during my little sojourn through a quiet, empty Pittsburgh shut down by the pandemic of 2020. This is another of those beautiful, pink trees I'd happened across while making my way down the Riverwalk, taking in the sights and for once in nearly a month, getting some real fresh air. It never fails to delight, seeing the various sights the city has to offer and knowing there's so much more I've yet to take in. So here you are, another one of those many sights!

This is the home of the University of Pittsburgh, Oakland. Something is very off about Oakland on this fine day, however. The city mirrors itself and contorts inward, all attention focused toward the beating heart of Oakland, its mind and soul; the Cathedral. The Cathedral of Learning is Oakland's nexus; the linchpin upon which the collegiate town revolves, and therefore in this vision of the city it is the center. It looms above all, and it gives the city and its people a sense of purpose. Yeah, I've been toying around with the surrealism some more! I hope you enjoy the latest fruits of my labor, and find it just as vexing to the senses as I'd hoped it would be :)

Pittsburgh is simply a wonderful city to take a walk in. The city layout isn't that difficult to figure out, as it's more or less a triangle. The city isn't that big, so you can see a LOT in a short amount of time. Furthermore, the city is also breathtakingly scenic, with striking colors to be found all over the place, not to mention interesting architectural detail. And so it was, on the completely gorgeous 4th of July we had in 2014, I was with a group of friends, walking around the city and watching the annual Regatta while suspended over the Allegheny River on this, the Fort Duquesne Bridge. I pointed my camera skyward to capture the curvature and detail of the bright yellow bridge, and managed to also capture the deep, cool blues of a Pennsylvania summer sky.

This is the Oxford Building, as seen from the 28th floor of the Fifth Avenue Place. It was a really serene, beautiful day that afternoon; I was invited out to attend VisitPittsburgh's "Art on the Walls" gala, as one of the featured artists, which was a great honor! Of course, considering it took place downtown and so high up in one of the city's most iconic buildings, I HAD to bring my camera...and what I saw out of their office windows certainly did not disappoint. For this photo in particular I decided to go a more painterly route; I wanted to emphasize the colors of the building as they contrasted with the colors of the sky. Though this was shot mid-day, I decided to try and skew the colors more towards a rosy sunset, giving this piece a very warm feel. The clouds in the background have been given a texture akin to oil paint, while the actual man-made lines of the Oxford Building itself remain untouched; again, an attempt at a contrast between the natural and human world. I hope you enjoy!

This is the Andy Warhol bridge, displaying far more color than its traditional golden yellow! I've decided that I really wanted to do something interesting with color for this one, and projected a rainbow filter over the entirety of the bridge, with the rest being in a high-contrast black and white. What can I say, though? I'm proud of this city, of its people, of its culture and this is just one way of celebrating it. So here's to you Pittsburgh, be proud! (This is the standard, non-bleeding version of the photograph, in which the rainbow colors stay confined within the bridge itself. There is another version, where the rainbow colors are bleed out from the bridge and into the sky)

One sunny afternoon in March of 2020, during the height of the COVID-19 lockdown, I decided to social distance myself downtown for some lonely photographs of our fair city in its locked-down state...and came across these beautiful cherry blossoms dotting the Riverwalk, by the stadiums. I'd never seen them in full bloom before, since the city is a decently far drive for me and it's really difficult to pin down exactly when these beauties flower. It was a pleasant, fresh surprise to see and a welcome reminder that even in the hardest of times, there are beautiful things to give us all reason to smile.

I've been to plenty of cities, from Toronto to Orlando, Portland to Chicago...and I can tell you from personal experience, every city has its own distinct 'flavor' that simply cannot be found anywhere else in the world. Pittsburgh's 'flavor' in particular feels tinged with age and history, every street corner hiding layers of the past, paved over by the progress of today. I can just imagine this same street corner seen here 85 years ago, with smoke thick in the sky and a bustling trolley system ferrying steel workers to and fro...and yet much of that is gone. What is left is pleasant, and distinctively Pittsburgh. You won't find another place like it, guaranteed!

Everyone around here knows, and loves, the Thunderbolt. Another old and famed attraction at Kennywood, this ride was originally named the "Pippin" when it debuted in 1924, but renamed to the Thunderbolt in 1968. Featuring a maximum drop of 90 feet and a top speed of 55 mph, this old wooden coaster of course pales in comparison to its modern steel brethren, but still manages a rickety and out-of-control feel that simply can't be found anywhere else. For me, since I'm generally averse to roller coasters for fear of losing my lunch, most of my memories of this coaster center around the fact that it sits right next to the park's best eatery, the Potato Patch. Gotta love those cheese fries!

Here's a shot looking up along the bright, bold yellow support structure of one of Pittsburgh's most famous and recognizable of bridges, the Roberto Clemente Bridge. This is the one right beside PNC Park, mind you. I'm always eager to try capturing a new angle on this bridge; considering how striking the bridge itself is, this lends itself very well to an almost endless list of things I'd love to eventually try.

It was a tiring day in the 'Burgh, the day of the 2012 Pittsburgh Great Race, a huge 5K and 10K race my brother had participated in. Less tiring for me than for him, of course! On the way back to the car, we took the scenic route through a somewhat hidden, empty park; one of the many that meandered through the skyscrapers. Along the way, I ran into this; a stoic, wistful statue staring at nothingness the way an elderly man would watch the world pass him by, wondering how he got lost amidst it all. It's only a statue of course...but I swear I could feel its gaze piercing into me as I passed by. I got that sensation of being watched and silently judged as I stepped away, down the path, as so many others have doubtlessly done, and will continue to do. Maybe one day, I'll be exactly like him.

Kennywood is a Pittsburgh icon; a part of all our lives, as the Rick Sebak documentary "Kennywood Memories" will attest. Virtually every one of us in Allegheny County have spent time here, basking in the sunlight, enjoying a corn dog and some Potato Patch fries, and no doubt relaxing at least one time per visit on this beautiful old carousel. The carousel was originally built in 1926 for the Philadelphia sesquicentennial celebration fair...but was not completed in time. So, rather than waste a perfectly wonderful carousel, it was moved in 1927 to Pittsburgh's Kennywood, where it has delighted generation after generation...but how often have any of us seen the ride like this?

The PPG Building is one of those quintessentially Pittsburgh places; a very iconic, beautiful structure covered in over 40,000 panels of plate glass, there just isn't a building anywhere else on Earth that I can think of, that looks remotely like it. A true one of a kind structure, this building is one of the most recognizable features of our fair city's skyline. Here, we see the PPG building after some photographic trickery has been done to make it look as though it were little more than a series of geometric shapes juxtaposed against the featureless void of a night sky, the moon hanging in the distance. In reality, the photograph was shot during the day, and the moon was taken as a completely different photograph shot down in Myrtle Beach, SC. Sometimes, honestly, I just want to play around with the photos I take and see what happens! This is the result.

Here we have the Steel Fortress itself, Heinz Field. This is the home of the six-time Super Bowl Champions, the Pittsburgh Steelers, and it is a site considered downright holy to those of us in and around the city. This place is just one of many reasons to be proud of our city, and I'm so happy I was able to snap this photo of it, looking as though it were the proverbial castle atop a hill. In many people's eyes, it certainly is. I had always wanted to try going to a game myself in an attempt to take pictures, but you know what? I would be completely unable to do so; cameras are not allowed inside Heinz Field, presumably because of licensing rights issues with the NFL. It's a shame, too! I'd love to capture the spirit of Pittsburgh's loyal, devoted sports culture...but for the time being, this is the closest I can get.

One day, the sky fell on Pittsburgh; clouds that should have drifted lazily about in the skies above instead found themselves flowing along the path of the Monongahela, rendering the city a scene from out of a dream. The winds were chilly and bit at my knuckles as I took the photos, but who could put their camera down while taking in such a sight?

Everyone around here knows, and loves, the Thunderbolt. Another old and famed attraction at Kennywood, this ride was originally named the "Pippin" when it debuted in 1924, but renamed to the Thunderbolt in 1968. Featuring a maximum drop of 90 feet and a top speed of 55 mph, this old wooden coaster of course pales in comparison to its modern steel brethren, but still manages a rickety and out-of-control feel that simply can't be found anywhere else. For me, since I'm generally averse to roller coasters for fear of losing my lunch, most of my memories of this coaster center around the fact that it sits right next to the park's best eatery, the Potato Patch. Gotta love those cheese fries!