![Gimbels’ department store looking south on Smithfield Street, Pittsburgh, early 1960s. Photo taken by Ralph McGough. [Old Family Photos]](http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m11js9Uz601qakblyo1_500.jpg)
Gimbels’ department store looking south on Smithfield Street, Pittsburgh, early 1960s. Photo taken by Ralph McGough. [Old Family Photos]
Andy Warhol’s Flowers, 1964, sold for $8,146,500 at the Contemporary Art Part I sale, 12 May 2011, New York.
Andy Warhol’s Flowers, 1964 was produced during what was arguably the most significant time period of the artist’s career. Though Warhol had already experienced a great deal of success with his images of Campbell’s Soup Cans, Liz, Marilyn and Elvis, the year 1964 saw his dramatic and meteoric rise to fame. To round off an outstanding season, Leo Castelli scheduled a Warhol show to take place at his gallery from November to December of that year featuring the artist’s new Flowers paintings. The source of the image Warhol appropriated for this series first appeared in the June 1964 issue of Modern Photography, a photograph of hibiscus blossoms illustrating an article about color processing. Following the show at Castelli Gallery, critic David Bourdon described Warhol’s Flowers as “…cut out gouaches by Matisse set adrift on Monet’s lily pond” (The Village Voice, December 3, 1964). The color scheme is also highly evocative of Van Gogh’s Irises.
Culling inspiration from a seemingly banal source, using a lithographic process, Warhol produced only two or three basic designs in a variety of color schemes, each in a square format. The artist found this format particularly satisfying because its regular shape allowed these paintings to be hung with any side up. As Warhol himself explained, “I like painting on a square…because you don’t have to decide whether it should be longerlonger or shorter-shorter or longer-shorter: it’s just a square” (D. Bourdon, Warhol, New York, 1989, p. 191).
(via learningarchitecture)
![Feick Brothers Medical Supplies Company and Penn Avenue Bowling Lanes on Penn Avenue, Pittsburgh, 1960s [Brady Stewart Collection]](http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m3vcshuQov1qakblyo1_500.png)
Feick Brothers Medical Supplies Company and Penn Avenue Bowling Lanes on Penn Avenue, Pittsburgh, 1960s [Brady Stewart Collection]
On This Day in Pittsburgh History: May 1, 1969
Fred Rogers, host of “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood,” appeared before the U.S. Senate Subcommittee on Communications to oppose significant proposed cuts to funding for PBS and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. [Youtube]
Sen. Pastore: All right, Rogers, you’ve got the floor.
Mr. Rogers: Sen. Pastore, this is a philosophical statement and would take about ten minutes to read, so I’ll not do that. One of the first things that a child learns in a healthy family is trust, and I trust what you have said that you will read this. It’s very important to me. I care deeply about children.
Sen. Pastore: Will it make you happy if you read it?
Mr. Rogers: I’d just like to talk about it, if it’s alright. My first children’s program was on WQED fifteen years ago, and its budget was $30. Now, with the help of the Sears-Roebuck Foundation and National Educational Television, as well as all of the affiliated stations — each station pays to show our program. It’s a unique kind of funding in educational television. With this help, now our program has a budget of $6000. It may sound like quite a difference, but $6000 pays for less than two minutes of cartoons. Two minutes of animated, what I sometimes say, bombardment. I’m very much concerned, as I know you are, about what’s being delivered to our children in this country. And I’ve worked in the field of child development for six years now, trying to understand the inner needs of children. We deal with such things as — as the inner drama of childhood. We don’t have to bop somebody over the head to…make drama on the screen. We deal with such things as getting a haircut, or the feelings about brothers and sisters, and the kind of anger that arises in simple family situations. And we speak to it constructively. (more)
![Heinz’s Condiments advertisement with NFL tie-in, LIFE magazine, September 1966
“Each week the average NFL team eats 1100 lbs. of meat. We’re not complaining.” [Vintage Ads and Stuff]](http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m3at5tkm9l1qakblyo1_500.jpg)
Heinz’s Condiments advertisement with NFL tie-in, LIFE magazine, September 1966
“Each week the average NFL team eats 1100 lbs. of meat. We’re not complaining.” [Vintage Ads and Stuff]
September 14, 1964: The Beatles perform at Civic Arena
Pittsburgh Civic Arena with the roof open
Federal Street, Pittsburgh, 1963 (via)
UPDATE: This was originally identified as Penn Avenue. Thank you to Matt for pointing out that it is more likely to be Federal Street. Apologies for the mistake, and truly guys, please never hesitate to send a correction. Thanks again!
![KDKA workers on strike (via Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)
On This Day in Pittsburgh History: February 21, 1960
KDKA performers, members of the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, go on strike. [Historic Pittsburgh]](http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lzjpq0P3it1qakblyo1_500.png)
KDKA workers on strike (via Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)
On This Day in Pittsburgh History: February 21, 1960
KDKA performers, members of the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, go on strike. [Historic Pittsburgh]
![Gimbels’ department store looking south on Smithfield Street, Pittsburgh, early 1960s. Photo taken by Ralph McGough. [Old Family Photos]](http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m11js9Uz601qakblyo1_1280.jpg)
Gimbels’ department store looking south on Smithfield Street, Pittsburgh, early 1960s. Photo taken by Ralph McGough. [Old Family Photos]
Andy Warhol’s Flowers, 1964, sold for $8,146,500 at the Contemporary Art Part I sale, 12 May 2011, New York.
Andy Warhol’s Flowers, 1964 was produced during what was arguably the most significant time period of the artist’s career. Though Warhol had already experienced a great deal of success with his images of Campbell’s Soup Cans, Liz, Marilyn and Elvis, the year 1964 saw his dramatic and meteoric rise to fame. To round off an outstanding season, Leo Castelli scheduled a Warhol show to take place at his gallery from November to December of that year featuring the artist’s new Flowers paintings. The source of the image Warhol appropriated for this series first appeared in the June 1964 issue of Modern Photography, a photograph of hibiscus blossoms illustrating an article about color processing. Following the show at Castelli Gallery, critic David Bourdon described Warhol’s Flowers as “…cut out gouaches by Matisse set adrift on Monet’s lily pond” (The Village Voice, December 3, 1964). The color scheme is also highly evocative of Van Gogh’s Irises.
Culling inspiration from a seemingly banal source, using a lithographic process, Warhol produced only two or three basic designs in a variety of color schemes, each in a square format. The artist found this format particularly satisfying because its regular shape allowed these paintings to be hung with any side up. As Warhol himself explained, “I like painting on a square…because you don’t have to decide whether it should be longerlonger or shorter-shorter or longer-shorter: it’s just a square” (D. Bourdon, Warhol, New York, 1989, p. 191).
(via learningarchitecture)
![Feick Brothers Medical Supplies Company and Penn Avenue Bowling Lanes on Penn Avenue, Pittsburgh, 1960s [Brady Stewart Collection]](http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m3vcshuQov1qakblyo1_1280.png)
Feick Brothers Medical Supplies Company and Penn Avenue Bowling Lanes on Penn Avenue, Pittsburgh, 1960s [Brady Stewart Collection]
On This Day in Pittsburgh History: May 1, 1969
Fred Rogers, host of “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood,” appeared before the U.S. Senate Subcommittee on Communications to oppose significant proposed cuts to funding for PBS and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. [Youtube]
Sen. Pastore: All right, Rogers, you’ve got the floor.
Mr. Rogers: Sen. Pastore, this is a philosophical statement and would take about ten minutes to read, so I’ll not do that. One of the first things that a child learns in a healthy family is trust, and I trust what you have said that you will read this. It’s very important to me. I care deeply about children.
Sen. Pastore: Will it make you happy if you read it?
Mr. Rogers: I’d just like to talk about it, if it’s alright. My first children’s program was on WQED fifteen years ago, and its budget was $30. Now, with the help of the Sears-Roebuck Foundation and National Educational Television, as well as all of the affiliated stations — each station pays to show our program. It’s a unique kind of funding in educational television. With this help, now our program has a budget of $6000. It may sound like quite a difference, but $6000 pays for less than two minutes of cartoons. Two minutes of animated, what I sometimes say, bombardment. I’m very much concerned, as I know you are, about what’s being delivered to our children in this country. And I’ve worked in the field of child development for six years now, trying to understand the inner needs of children. We deal with such things as — as the inner drama of childhood. We don’t have to bop somebody over the head to…make drama on the screen. We deal with such things as getting a haircut, or the feelings about brothers and sisters, and the kind of anger that arises in simple family situations. And we speak to it constructively. (more)
Heinz’s Condiments advertisement with NFL tie-in, LIFE magazine, September 1966
“Each week the average NFL team eats 1100 lbs. of meat. We’re not complaining.” [Vintage Ads and Stuff]
![Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, 1963 [University of Pittsburgh Digital Archives]](http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m17087ysQo1qakblyo1_1280.png)
September 14, 1964: The Beatles perform at Civic Arena
Pittsburgh Civic Arena with the roof open
Federal Street, Pittsburgh, 1963 (via)
UPDATE: This was originally identified as Penn Avenue. Thank you to Matt for pointing out that it is more likely to be Federal Street. Apologies for the mistake, and truly guys, please never hesitate to send a correction. Thanks again!
![Pittsburgh Penguins, 1967 [Pittsburgh Hockey]](http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lzma15EMCS1qakblyo1_1280.jpg)
![KDKA workers on strike (via Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)
On This Day in Pittsburgh History: February 21, 1960
KDKA performers, members of the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, go on strike. [Historic Pittsburgh]](http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lzjpq0P3it1qakblyo1_1280.png)
KDKA workers on strike (via Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)
On This Day in Pittsburgh History: February 21, 1960
KDKA performers, members of the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, go on strike. [Historic Pittsburgh]
