PREVIEW // Factory 500: Lenka Clayton Studio + Clemente Museum Visit

Coming up next for our Factory 500 member program, we will be taking members on a one-of-a-kind tour of artist Lenka Clayton's studio in Polish Hill and to the Clemente Museum in Lawrenceville!

Lenka Clayton is a British conceptual artist whose work considers, exaggerates and alters the accepted rules of everyday life, extending the familiar into the realms of the poetic and absurd. Some of her previous works have included filming one person each age from 1 to 100, hand-numbering 7,000 stones, and founding An Artist Residency In Motherhood - a fully funded and structured artist residency that takes place inside her own home and life as a mother of two young children. Currently, Lenka and writer Michael Crowe are in the process of writing a personal letter to every household in America.

The Clemente Museum showcases the world's largest exhibited collection of baseball artifacts, works of art, literature, photographs and memorabilia which focus on Pittsburgh Pirate legend Roberto Clemente, his teammates, his personal life and his humanitarian causes. Here you can find everything from his 1960 and 1971 World Series rings, to his Gold Glove Awards, to a vase Roberto made for his wife Vera with her name scratched into it.

This event will take place on July 11, 2015 with the following schedule:

Lenka Clayton Studio // 3100 Brereton St., Pittsburgh, PA 15219 | 2:30 - 4:15 pm

Clemente Museum // 3339 Penn Ave., Pittsburgh, PA 15201 | 4:30 - 6pm

For more information on our Factory 500 program, click here or contact Caitlin Harpster.

Factory 500 is a great way to meet and connect with other contemporary art enthusiasts! Members enjoy exclusive entrée to artist studios, private collections and behind-the-scenes access to some of the most unique art happenings around Pittsburgh. Visit the "For Members" page to see upcoming Factory 500 events.

Urban Garden Party 2015: A Major Success!

Last Friday night nearly 1,200 people turned out to support the most magical event of the summer! The tent was rocking and the garden was packed. This year's Urban Garden Party offered food + drink from the city's best restaurants and bars, a magic show, a silent art auction, the ultimate Michael Jackson tribute and much more. After tallying up all of our ticket sales and sponsor pledges, we brought in nearly $220,000 for the museum.

Our photographers were roving the party all night and we're uploading pictures to Flickr as we get them. Share your photos with us using #UrbanGardenParty or #MattressFactory... we'd love to see them! If you had your photo taken in the photo booth at the party, your pictures may be here.

Finally, a big Mattress Factory thank you to our co-chairs Lisa Cibik + Bernie Kobosky and all of our wonderful sponsors. We could not have thrown the hottest party in Pittsburgh without the help of every single one of them. Make sure to help us thank our sponsors by seeking them for any of the professional services they provide.  

MF Co-Directors Michael Olijynk and Barbara Luderowski with Urban Garden Party Chairs Lisa Cibik and Bernie Kobosky.

Mark your calendar! The 2016 Urban Garden Party will take place Friday, June 17.  

PREVIEW // Community Garden Party 2015

Calling all families and fun-lovers! Our annual Community Garden Party is right around the corner with more music, craft-making, munchies, and activities than ever! The big event will be held Sunday, June 21 from 1-5pm and is FREE for all ages. Here's a look at what we have in store for this year's shindig:

Move your feet to the beat with an all day music line-up including the May Day Marching Band, Amongst the Monks, Molly Alphabet and Machete Kisumontao.

Amongst the Monks

May Day Marching Band

Make magical medallions, masking tape mazes, and mythical monster masks with the Mattress Factory!

 Community Garden Party 2013

Make miniature gardens with Irma Freeman Center for Imagination, capture memories and mugshots in a Photo Booth by Fishstep Studios, and mess around with Makey Makey.

Marvel at mime and magician Howard Mincone.

Mobile food munchies from PGH Taco Truck, Franktuary, and The Pop Stop.

Other activities include making with Techshop, megawatt manifestations with The Land Art Generator Initiative, and making marvelous screen printed masterpieces with Artists Image Resource.

We can't wait to see you there!

PREVIEW // ARTLab: Feel the Music!

Ever wonder why music makes you feel the way you do? The secret's in the low frequency sound. For this upcoming ARTLab program, you'll have the opportunity to make your own low-frequency music and sounds that you can hear and feel for yourself!

By experimenting with speaker settings and levels, you can see how music affects anything from a person's mood to a whole room's atmosphere. Inspired by Danny Bracken's 2014 piece, What Does It Mean?, explore sound and its effects on the subconscious by creating it yourself. From toddlers to adults, the Mattress Factory invites all to participate in "Feel the Music!" on Saturday, June 6 at 1pm. Be sure to come early to enjoy a guided tour of the museum - both are complementary with museum admission.