Artists’ & Photographers’ Creations Brighten Kane Glen Hazel

  

The walls at the John J. Kane Regional Center in Glen Hazel are being transformed into a work of art thanks to talented artists and creative photographers from the Milestone Centers for People with Behavioral and Intellectual Challenges located in Wilkinsburg.

Currently 36 paintings are on display at Kane Glen Hazel, and the photography project is well underway. A reception to officially unveil the entire collection tentatively is set for late May.

One of the artists, George Gaydos, has 16 of his paintings in the Kane Glen Hazel lobby. Gaydos is a Pittsburgh native who has been painting since the mid-1970’s. He is part of the Milestone Day Treatment Therapeutic Art Programs. Painting, Gaydos said, has been therapy to him for decades and he wants to give back to others through his artwork.
     
“Art is therapy for me,” said Gaydos, who attended the Art Institute of Pittsburgh in the 1970’s and received a certificate in air brush painting. “I enjoy doing things for people who appreciate the art. I teach the people that want to learn. I have been in hospitals and institutions myself. I remember being in (the former) Mayview State Hospital in 1988 and there was nothing on the walls -- nothing to take your mind off things. Everyone needs a little bit of fantasy in their life. It is going to lift your spirits.”

Gaydos’ work is intended to lift the spirits of residents, staff and visitors at Glen Hazel. The artwork donated by members of the Day Treatment Therapeutic Art Programs certainly has sparked interest and started more than a few conversations.

“The key feeling about this artwork is that George and other artists in the organization have received services their entire lives, and now they are returning services by making their artwork visible to our residents and the residents at Kane Glen Hazel,” said Jennifer Macioce, LCSW, Director of Day Treatment and Deaf Services at Milestone Centers.

Kirsten Ervin, a therapist at Milestone and former gallery manager, is coordinating the art project. She and Gaydos are working together each week to mat and frame the art in frames donated by the Pittsburgh Center for the Arts, Panza Gallery, Carnegie Mellon Art Department and several individual Pittsburgh artists. Gaydos, a self-employed carpenter for 30 years, has already donated hours of time and expertise to the framing process. “George has taught me so much about framing, and this is after I ran a gallery for three years” Ervin said.

In addition to the murals, a second endeavor involving Milestone and Kane Glen Hazel is underway. Kane residents recently were asked to compile a list of their favorite locations throughout the Pittsburgh region to be photographed by a Milestone art therapy group.

“The photography group has met with Kane residents,” Macioce said.  “They have a questionnaire that asks three questions: Where in Pittsburgh are you originally from?; What are your three favorite places in  Pittsburgh?; and if you could only have one picture of Pittsburgh that you could keep with you, what would it be? Once that information is compiled, the group decides which images to shoot based on the answers.”

The photographs eventually will be framed and displayed at Kane Glen Hazel.

Jessica Kalmar, a photographer and instructor at the Art Institute of Pittsburgh, is a long-time volunteer with the Milestone photography group. She is coordinating the photography portion of the exhibit that will be displayed at Kane Glen Hazel.

“The artwork currently on display is impressive,” said Albert Pantone, Recreation Therapist at Kane Glen Hazel and one of the project organizers. “We are eagerly awaiting the photographs that will complement the artwork. We are proud that Kane Glen Hazel and Milestone Centers have teamed to produce such an aesthetically pleasing and worthwhile project.”

For more information, contact Jennifer Macioce, LCSW, Director of Day Treatment and Deaf Services at Milestone Centers at 412.473.8059, or Albert Pantone, Kane Glen Hazel Recreation Therapist, at 412.422.6993.