♥ We Love Our Neighbors ♥

Did you know that the Mattress Factory offers half-off admission for our neighbors year-round? It’s true – all you need to do is show us a valid ID displaying a 15212 or 15233 zip code, and we’ll take 50% off your general admission price.

Wish exchange dandelion by Ling He, on view through January 6th, 2013

You know what else? Now any guest who presents their Access / EBT card can receive admission for up to four people at only $1 each. Just present your card and a photo ID at the front desk to receive the discount. For only $1, you can see all of the museum's installations, including those in our upcoming exhibition Feminist and...

Just one week away!

We know cash is tight for almost everybody these days, so we’d like to make the museum as accessible as possible in any little way we can. We offer discounts for students and seniors, and of course, kids under 6 are always free!

Fourteen musicians, sixteen days, one beautiful album

Back in the summer of 2010, our then Curator-in-Residence Mark Garry invited musicians from Berlin, Dublin, London, and Brussels to collaborate with some of Pittsburgh’s own virtuosos here at the Mattress Factory. The result was a two-week long residency during which time our fourth floor was transformed into a fully functioning recording studio, and music could often be heard traveling through the halls of our galleries. The residency culminated in a live performance of the music they had created together. And now, two years later, the full-length album of this collaboration is finally completed and available for download.

Sample a track from A Generous Act

A Generous Act contains 14 tracks that call to mind bands like Air, The Books, and Kid A-era Radiohead, while somehow retaining a sense of the unique circumstances under which the album was created (one track is named “We Like Being In Kusama"). It really is something special. And the best part is, proceeds from the album go right back into MF’s exhibitions and programming so we can keep doing what we do.



"This is the first time that a museum of contemporary art has supported a project like this, and I am so pleased that the recordings of 'A Generous Act' have managed to contain the amazing energy we all experienced during those two special weeks in Pittsburgh," shares Mark Garry, Curator-in-Residence for the project. "I really want to thank the directors, staff, and board of the Mattress Factory for supporting this project, and I especially want to thank all of the musicians – and Fabien Leseure, the sound engineer – for making the most of this unique and remarkable situation."

Click here to download!

Download 'A Generous Act'

Young artists showcase their art on August 9th!

Fueled by chocolate cupcakes and the superb guidance of artist and teacher Jeremy Boyle, the students of this summer’s Factory 14s teen art intensive have been hard at work finishing up their installation in MF’s 3rd floor galleries. The as-of-yet untitled piece is an amalgam of futuristic landscapes, mylar-inspired optical illusions, eerie homemade audio recordings and maybe, just maybe, a robot made from circuit boards, recycled bicycle parts, and duct tape.

The fruits of their labor will be on display at the Community ArtLab Celebration and Factory 14s Showcase this Thursday, August 9 from 6 – 8 p.m. All are welcome and admission is FREE!

The celebration marks the conclusion of another successful season of Community ArtLab, and will showcase the work of students from all four workshops. Check out some of the summer's highlights below!

Instructor Heather White explains how to be a Super Hero

A meditation circle at Community ArtLab "Utopia"

Students learn The Power of Play by designing and creating their own games

Thanks to all of our students, teachers, staff, and parents for an amazing summer of community and creativity. See you at the celebration!

What: Community ArtLab and Factory 14s Celebration
Where: Mattress Factory lobby
When: Thursday, August 9, 2012 from 6-8pm
Cost: FREE
Who: All ages are welcome!

Then and Now: Michael Olijnyk

These two photos just gives us one more reason why we love Michael Olijnyk so much. He has been curator/co-director of the museum since it was founded in 1977 (he also exhibited here back in 1982).

Here he is when the museum just started more than thirty years ago.

Here he is today. We asked him to recreate the above iconic pose at a staff party on Friday. He happily obliged with fake mustache and all.

POSTED BY LINDSAY Read All Posts by Lindsay