Pittsburgh features some of the best galleries and art museums that highlight and showcase contemporary art by the local and regional artists. A quick visit to these galleries and museums would definitely enhance your life culturally and artistically.

- Modern Formations: Gallery hours are from 7pm to 9pm on Thursdays and from 1pm to 4pm on Saturdays. The gallery remains closed on the first Thursdays and on the last Saturdays of every month. The current exhibition going on at the Modern Formations is showcasing paintings and iconography dedicated to the loss of life, loss of memory and loss of hearing. This gallery is dedicated to showcasing the diverse art forms from Pittsburgh.

- Carnegie Museum of Art: The Carnegie Museums is right now showcasing three different exhibitions in three galleries - the 100th Annual Exhibition of Associated Artists of Pittsburgh (Heinz Galleries), various Caricatures and Satires (Works on Paper gallery), Decorative Arts and Design (Ailsa Mellon Bruce Galleries). The various collections of art forms at the Carnegie include film and video works.

- Four Winds Gallery: This Gallery is a fine art gallery in the US that is dedicated to the Native American art. The Four Winds Gallery showcases exhibitions on contemporary and historic jewelry, contemporary and historic pottery, sculpture, weavings, furniture and other art forms depicting the Native American art form.

Fireborn Studios and Art Gallery: This art gallery is dedicated to pottery and other forms of fine crafts. The pottery showcases designs by eminent artists and other students. Most of the pottery is made of hand blown glass and portrays intricate designs and glaze finish.

The importance and popularity of Pittsburgh art can be judged from the fact that art transforms, employs, greens and inspires Pittsburgh. Role of arts in transforming the city can be seen from the development of various cultural communities such as the Cultural District, the Street Valley, Penn Avenue etc. Arts generate millions of dollars in economic activity, support many jobs and appear to be a smart option for economic investment.

With close to 40 LEED certified buildings, Pittsburgh rules the green architecture movement. Pittsburgh itself is a creation of art, an amalgamation of nature and human design.

Pittsburgh Art Council aims to enhance the influence and effectiveness of cultural community in order to make arts an essential part of the life of people.

Official Website of Pittsburgh Art Council

http://pittsburghartscouncil.org/contactus.htm

There are many wonderful museums in Pittsburg, some of them being world-class institutions. The Carnegie Museums in Oakland are absolutely marvelous; while the Carnegie Museum of Natural History exhibits works of paleontology, geology, and biology, the Carnegie Museum of Art, displays classical and contemporary works. Located nearby is the home of steel magnate Henry Clay Frick's mansion, now open for visitors, known as the Frick Art and Historical Center.

In the Strip District is the Senator John Heinz History Center, the largest history museum in Pennsylvania. The Carnegie Science Center and the Children's Museum of Pittsburgh are the favourite with kids. The Mattress Factory, the National Aviary and the Andy Warhol Museum are also very popular museums.

List of All the Galleries, Museums and Places Related to Art

http://pittsburgh.net/interests.cfm?CtgID=7&GrpID=1#Art

Pittsburgh has become a center of attraction for students of art and architecture. The most famous institutes of arts are Art Institute of Pittsburgh, Studio Arts Department (University of Pittsburgh), School of Art, Carnegie Mellon University etc.

These art schools offer a variety of programs such as Art Management, Art History, Visual Arts, Electronic and Time based Art, Culinary Art etc. They also offer internship programs, study abroad programs, awards and research programs for their students.

Official website of Pittsburgh Center for the Arts

http://www.pittsburgharts.org/community_index.php

Official website of The Three Rivers Arts Festival

http://www.artsfestival.net/about-the-three-rivers-arts-festival/

The Historical Society of Western Pennsylvania (HSWP) happens to be one cultural organization. It is located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. After a lot of efforts through the early part and middle of the century to set up a historical society, an association known as Old Residents of Pittsburgh and Western Pennsylvania had been formed in the year 1879. After 5 years the group altered this name to the Historical Society of Western Pennsylvania. Today, Historical Society of Western Pennsylvania is the oldest association or organization in the region devoted to culture.

What does it do?

Historical Society of Western Pennsylvania does business at the same time and it also operates as the following two:-Senator John Heinz History Center: It has exhibits as well Museum Shop that remains open everyday from 10am till 5pm except on Christmas Day, Easter, New Year's Day and Thanksgiving.

http://www.heinzhistorycenter.org/-Meadowcroft Rockshelter: It is the oldest spot of the human habitation in the North of America. It offers a peek into lives of the prehistoric hunters as well as gathers.

http://www.heinzhistorycenter.org/meadowcroft.aspx

What does the History Center consist of?

The History Center has Library and Archives. These preserve a number of atlases, photographs, books, manuscripts, newspapers, maps, films as well as recordings. This achieves record more than 250 years of existence of this region. Then there is the Western Pennsylvania Sports Museum which is interestingly a museum-within-a-museum that documents the wide-ranging extensive sports legacy of Pittsburgh.

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0.03 miles-Doubletree Hotel Pittsburgh

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0.23 miles-Courtyard By Marriott Pittsburgh Downtown

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0.27 miles-Omni William Penn Hotel

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0.44 miles-Marriott Pittsburgh City Center

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0.47 miles-The Priory Hotel

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0.5 miles

Historical Society of Western Pennsylvania displays 4 permanent exhibits, 6 galleries of changing exhibits, Discovery Place for children plus Kidsburgh. There are educational programs meant for adults as well as children, a museum shop and many other things.