K&L Gates Center Archives

Sixth Avenue- Pittsburgh by Carol Skinger

A 22″ x 30″ archival print of my ink drawing of Sixth Avenue- Pittsburgh has been purchased this spring of 2016 by the Duquesne Club in Pittsburgh.

Prints of this pen and ink drawing on archival paper 8 1/2″ x 11″ can be purchased here. Contact me for larger sizes.

Now I am in the collection of the Duquesne Club which is very cool to say! They have an important art collection. Anyone who has been in there will not forget seeing Charles Russell’s “When Shadows Hint Death”!

The Duquesne Club appears on the right in the foreground of my ink drawing Sixth Avenue Pittsburgh. Other things seen in drawing: Trinity Cathedral, First Presbyterian Church of Pittsburgh, the Granite Building, EQT Plaza, K&L Gates Center, Wood St Galleries, Wood St. T Station.

The Duquesne Club was the strictly the old boys network until 1980 when women could become members.

“Women were first welcomed as guests at the Ladies Cocktail Bar in 1934, but not as members until 1980. Yet, in this age of egalitarianism, the Club has thrived as has its art collection that most small museums would trade their marble columns for. It boasts a curator, published catalog, docent-led tours and distinguished Art Society in charge of new acquisitions.” Read more: The Duquesne Club: An exclusive retreat for the corporate elite by Jean Horne

Another article Duquesne Club’s art has reflected the city’s power and history by Patricia Lowry has more about the art collection, the history and the architecture of the Duquesne Club.

A smaller archival print was purchased previously for the Archives of the Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh at Trinity Cathedral, which is directly across the street from the Duquesne Club. The Archives are open on Mondays and Thursdays from noon to 4:30, but people need to set an appointment for research. Call 412-232-6404 x 138. The Archives are located on the third floor of Trinity Cathedral, 328 Sixth Avenue in downtown Pittsburgh.

I first penned this drawing to add to my ink collection for a Black and White show curated by Kathleen Zimbicki.

My friend Pittsburgh artist Cynthia Cooley painted this piece for the Duquesne Club a while back.

6th Avenue Pittsburgh showing the Duquesne Club, Trinity Cathedral, First Presbyterian Church of Pittsburgh, K&L Gates Center, Granite Building, Wood Street T Station

6th Avenue Pittsburgh showing Duquesne Club, Trinity Cathedral, First Presbyterian Church of Pittsburgh, Granite Building, EQT Plaza, K&L Gates Center, Wood St Galleries, Wood St. T Station

I recently learned people are interested in my drawing process so I am showing a progress drawing as well as the final drawing.

They are now available as 8 1/2 x 11″ prints on archival paper. You can order from me or they are often in stock at Staghorn Cafe in Greenfield and at Pittsburgh Center for the Arts shop.

This is the process I go through to create another silly ink drawing. I draw all the individual buildings- and fool around with angle and scale of each until I can sense perspective but everything is off-kilter and silly. Then I add stuff going on in the streets.

This is one my favorite blocks in Pittsburgh- 6th Avenue between Smithfield and Liberty. I have studied this block, or block and a quarter, ever since first laying eyes on it. I absolutely love the architecture displayed on that block. Pittsburgh History and Landmarks has lots of information about Pittsburgh and I often use their site and the Carnegie Library to find out more about my favorite Pittsburgh buildings.

How I got started in ink drawing. Ben and Jerry were just starting out in Burlington, VT when they encouraged me to make prints and sell my first silly ink drawing of Burlington, which had been on the wall of their first ice cream shop. This is the newest addition to the collection. I have done them in Pittsburgh, Boston and Stowe.

Some of them are available here as greeting cards on my website, at Pittsburgh Center for the Arts shop, WELCOME Pittsburgh Information Center and Gift Shop at Fifth Avenue Place, downtown.

More about what’s in this drawing:

A whimsical drawing of Sixth Avenue in Pittsburgh. Cars, bikes, a bus, pedestrians and a kayak make their way up or down Sixth Avenue under the gaze of the Duquesne Club, Trinity Cathedral, First Presbyterian Church of Pittsburgh, Granite Building, EQT Plaza, K&L Gates Center, Wood St Galleries and the Wood St. T Station.

In 2016 The Duquesne Club purchased a 22″ X 30″ print of this drawing from the artist. The Duquesne Club was founded in 1873. The club’s present home, a Romanesque structure designed by Longfellow, Alden & Harlow on Sixth Avenue in downtown Pittsburgh, was opened in 1890; an addition designed by Janssen & Cocken that included a garden patio, barbershop, and new kitchens was constructed in 1931. The building achieved landmark status from the Pittsburgh History and Landmarks Foundation in 1976, and was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1995. The Club voted to admit women for the first time in its history in 1980.

The Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh previously purchased 8 1/2 x 11″ prints for their archive and offices.

Sixth Avenue drawing goes to the Duquesne Club!

Architecture soup…another silly ink drawing of Pittsburgh!