Nearly 20 years ago, the Grohmann Museum at MSOE opened it doors to share art in all mediums that celebrated, explored or captured humans at work – from harvesting wheat to brewing beer to building railroads to forging steel and beyond.
Now, after dozens of exhibitions and an ever-growing collection of art inspired by industry, the Grohmann Museum hosts what just may be the perfect intersection of art and industry.
“Patterns of Meaning: The Art of Industry by Cory Bonnet,” which opens on Friday, Jan. 19 at the museum, 1000 N. Broadway, focuses on work by Pittsburgh artist Cory Bonnet, who not only draws inspiration from the steel industry, but uses remnants of that industry as his canvas.
Bonnet paints on material salvaged from moribund steel mills in Western Pennsylvania and Ohio – forms and patterns and rollers and all sorts of vintage, often-hulking objects. Bonnet's New Vision Studio collaborators use the objects to create glass artwork, ceramics, furniture and other artwork, too.
“I was a traditional oil painter,” says Bonnet, who studied animation in college while working in machine shops and waiting tables. After graduation, he worked in a specialty building supply company that specialized in wood and wood coatings. When his employer asked if he’d like to learn more about LEED sustainability, he jumped at the opportunity.
Wow! This sounds incredible! Excited to see it.