ARTS GUIDE Exhibit spotlights artist who captured steel era BY PATRICK VARINE Artist Aaron Gorson came to Pitts- burgh as a portrait painter in the early 20th century. But a trip to the city's Bluff neighborhood changed all that. "He looked up the Mon River and saw the spectacular show of the steel mills at night, with lights and flames flaring," said Maxwell King, a former Heinz Endowments president. "Ini- tially, he just started making paintings of the mills for himself. But one of them found its way to a relative of Andrew Carnegie, and suddenly the titans of industry began buying up his paintings." Gorson's industrial artwork, paired with King's words, is part of a new exhibit at The Westmoreland Muse- um of American Art in Greensburg. King came to the museum initially to research Gorson for a biography he was working on. When museum staff asked about his research, they suggested curating a small gallery. "In his time, he was the leading industrial artist in America, probably in the world," King said. "When he was here, Pittsburgh was the center of the world for manufacturing and steel production. He saw the incredible spectacle of steelmaking and under- stood the beauty of it." The irony, King said, is that nearly every other painter in Southwestern Pennsylvania at the time was riding on trains to Westmoreland and Cam- bria counties for their inspiration. "They were coming out here to paint all these bucolic scenes," said King, 80, of Ligonier. "They thought industry was terrible, all this smoke and flames and dark skies. But Gor- son talks about how beautiful the steelmaking process is. He captured one of the most important things in the world, and his paintings of the COURTESY WESTMORELAND MUSEUM OF AMERICAN ART "Monongahela Steel Mills and Barges," a 1912 painting by industrial artist Aaron Gorson, is part of The Westmoreland Museum of American Art's feature gallery, "Works by Aaron Gorson, Words by Maxwell King." mills at night are really lovely and impressionistic." The exhibit features works on loan from private collections, and the text is drawn from King's research into Gorson's life and career, which will be collected and expanded upon in his upcoming biography, "Fire in the Night Sky," to be published in spring 2026. King, a former editor of The Phila- delphia Inquirer, has written biogra- phies on Pittsburgh artist John Kane as well as Fred Rogers. "Originally, I resisted looking into Gorson's life, because I thought his life wasn't all that interesting," King said. "But my research proved otherwise." In fact, Gorson may have been too good at his industrial artwork, King said. "After about 20 years, he felt he'd sort of painted himself into a corner," King said. "He picked up and moved his family to New York City, lived in the Bronx and began doing paintings of Harlem, the Hudson River, ships on the waterfront-and nobody bought them." What had initially been a passion slowly became more of a workaday job in Gorson's later career, as he moved back to Pittsburgh and returned to paintings centered around industry. "He'd established this great reputa- tion for it, and then he couldn't escape it," King said. "Works by Aaron Gorson, Words by Maxwell King" will be on view at The Westmoreland through the fall. The museum is at 221 N. Main St. in Greensburg. For more information, visit The Westmoreland.org. Patrick Varine is a TribLive staff writer. He can be reached at pvarine@triblive.com. St STATE THEATRE center for the arts If you can't get your fill of Dancing with the Stars, American Idol, and So You Think You Can Dance -here they are, all in one show! Ballroom With a Twist! Starring the celebrity pros from Dancing with the Stars, Anna Trebunskaya, Demtri Chaplin and from So You Think You Can Dance Gev Manoukin, this amazing show brings a frenzy of sensational dances, from Rhumba to Salsa to Hip Hop along-side finalists from So You Think You Can Dance accompanied by powerhouse American Idol finalists. Don't miss this unbeatable evening Sponsored In Memory of Retta Semans BALLROOM WITH TWIST!! FEATURING CELEBRITY PROS FROM THE GOT TALENT VOICE AMERICAN SO YOU THINK DANCING AMERICAS IDOL YOU CAN DANCE STARS May 14, 2025 7:00pm $35, $45, $50 YACHT ROCK GOLD EXPERIENCE Yacht Rock, as a musical genre, has built a loyal and unwaverng fan base who love to enjoy life, have fun, and "Drift Away". Yacht Rock Gold Experience brings all your favorite hits from the late 1970's-early 1980's. Celebrating the smooth sounds of the Doobie Brothers, Steely Dan, Kenny Loggins, Little River Band, Ambrosia, Boz Skaggs and so many more, Yacht Rock Gold dazzles with amazing harmonies, powerful soloists, and excellent musicianship. You will sing along with every song at this fun night of great music! Sponsored in Part by First Federal Savings and Loan Association of Greene County Picklesburgh slated for July 11-13 BY JOANNE KLIMOVICH HARROP Picklesburgh dates for this year have been announced. The celebration of all things pickle will be held July 11 to 13. "We're not discussing location details at this time. ... We'll be dis- closing those at a later date along with other event information," said Richard Hooper, vice president of marketing and communications for the Pittsburgh Downtown Part- nership. Picklesburgh reclaimed its first- place spot in the Readers' Choice Award for the USA Today 10 Best Specialty Food Festivals competi- tion. The event finished second last year after earning the No. 1 spot the three years prior. Established in 2015, Picklesburgh is one of the largest festivals in West- ern Pennsylvania, and it continues to grow. Last year's event broke atten- dance records, with 250,000 people, according to the Pittsburgh Down- town Partnership. In an extended footprint, the festival encompassed the Boulevard of the Allies between Stanwix and Smithfield streets, PPG Plaza and Market Square. Those venues were packed in 2024. Picklesburgh has a pickle-juice drinking contest and entertainment on several stages as well as a chil- dren's play area and lots of pick- le-themed food and drinks. Details: picklesburgh.com. JoAnne Klimovich Harrop is a TribLive staff writer. She can be reached at jharrop@triblive.com. May 17, 2025 7:00pm $25, $35, $45 27 East Main Street, Uniontown, PA 15401 724-439-1360 StateTheatre.info ARTS GUIDE Exhibit spotlights artist who captured steel era BY PATRICK VARINE Artist Aaron Gorson came to Pitts- burgh as a portrait painter in the early 20th century . But a trip to the city's Bluff neighborhood changed all that . " He looked up the Mon River and saw the spectacular show of the steel mills at night , with lights and flames flaring , " said Maxwell King , a former Heinz Endowments president . " Ini- tially , he just started making paintings of the mills for himself . But one of them found its way to a relative of Andrew Carnegie , and suddenly the titans of industry began buying up his paintings . " Gorson's industrial artwork , paired with King's words , is part of a new exhibit at The Westmoreland Muse- um of American Art in Greensburg . King came to the museum initially to research Gorson for a biography he was working on . When museum staff asked about his research , they suggested curating a small gallery . " In his time , he was the leading industrial artist in America , probably in the world , " King said . " When he was here , Pittsburgh was the center of the world for manufacturing and steel production . He saw the incredible spectacle of steelmaking and under- stood the beauty of it . " The irony , King said , is that nearly every other painter in Southwestern Pennsylvania at the time was riding on trains to Westmoreland and Cam- bria counties for their inspiration . " They were coming out here to paint all these bucolic scenes , " said King , 80 , of Ligonier . " They thought industry was terrible , all this smoke and flames and dark skies . But Gor- son talks about how beautiful the steelmaking process is . He captured one of the most important things in the world , and his paintings of the COURTESY WESTMORELAND MUSEUM OF AMERICAN ART " Monongahela Steel Mills and Barges , " a 1912 painting by industrial artist Aaron Gorson , is part of The Westmoreland Museum of American Art's feature gallery , " Works by Aaron Gorson , Words by Maxwell King . " mills at night are really lovely and impressionistic . " The exhibit features works on loan from private collections , and the text is drawn from King's research into Gorson's life and career , which will be collected and expanded upon in his upcoming biography , " Fire in the Night Sky , " to be published in spring 2026 . King , a former editor of The Phila- delphia Inquirer , has written biogra- phies on Pittsburgh artist John Kane as well as Fred Rogers . " Originally , I resisted looking into Gorson's life , because I thought his life wasn't all that interesting , " King said . " But my research proved otherwise . " In fact , Gorson may have been too good at his industrial artwork , King said . " After about 20 years , he felt he'd sort of painted himself into a corner , " King said . " He picked up and moved his family to New York City , lived in the Bronx and began doing paintings of Harlem , the Hudson River , ships on the waterfront - and nobody bought them . " What had initially been a passion slowly became more of a workaday job in Gorson's later career , as he moved back to Pittsburgh and returned to paintings centered around industry . " He'd established this great reputa- tion for it , and then he couldn't escape it , " King said . " Works by Aaron Gorson , Words by Maxwell King " will be on view at The Westmoreland through the fall . The museum is at 221 N. Main St. in Greensburg . For more information , visit The Westmoreland.org . Patrick Varine is a TribLive staff writer . He can be reached at pvarine@triblive.com . St STATE THEATRE center for the arts If you can't get your fill of Dancing with the Stars , American Idol , and So You Think You Can Dance -here they are , all in one show ! Ballroom With a Twist ! Starring the celebrity pros from Dancing with the Stars , Anna Trebunskaya , Demtri Chaplin and from So You Think You Can Dance Gev Manoukin , this amazing show brings a frenzy of sensational dances , from Rhumba to Salsa to Hip Hop along - side finalists from So You Think You Can Dance accompanied by powerhouse American Idol finalists . Don't miss this unbeatable evening Sponsored In Memory of Retta Semans BALLROOM WITH TWIST !! FEATURING CELEBRITY PROS FROM THE GOT TALENT VOICE AMERICAN SO YOU THINK DANCING AMERICAS IDOL YOU CAN DANCE STARS May 14 , 2025 7:00 pm $ 35 , $ 45 , $ 50 YACHT ROCK GOLD EXPERIENCE Yacht Rock , as a musical genre , has built a loyal and unwaverng fan base who love to enjoy life , have fun , and " Drift Away " . Yacht Rock Gold Experience brings all your favorite hits from the late 1970's - early 1980's . Celebrating the smooth sounds of the Doobie Brothers , Steely Dan , Kenny Loggins , Little River Band , Ambrosia , Boz Skaggs and so many more , Yacht Rock Gold dazzles with amazing harmonies , powerful soloists , and excellent musicianship . You will sing along with every song at this fun night of great music ! Sponsored in Part by First Federal Savings and Loan Association of Greene County Picklesburgh slated for July 11-13 BY JOANNE KLIMOVICH HARROP Picklesburgh dates for this year have been announced . The celebration of all things pickle will be held July 11 to 13 . " We're not discussing location details at this time . ... We'll be dis- closing those at a later date along with other event information , " said Richard Hooper , vice president of marketing and communications for the Pittsburgh Downtown Part- nership . Picklesburgh reclaimed its first- place spot in the Readers ' Choice Award for the USA Today 10 Best Specialty Food Festivals competi- tion . The event finished second last year after earning the No. 1 spot the three years prior . Established in 2015 , Picklesburgh is one of the largest festivals in West- ern Pennsylvania , and it continues to grow . Last year's event broke atten- dance records , with 250,000 people , according to the Pittsburgh Down- town Partnership . In an extended footprint , the festival encompassed the Boulevard of the Allies between Stanwix and Smithfield streets , PPG Plaza and Market Square . Those venues were packed in 2024 . Picklesburgh has a pickle - juice drinking contest and entertainment on several stages as well as a chil- dren's play area and lots of pick- le - themed food and drinks . Details : picklesburgh.com . JoAnne Klimovich Harrop is a TribLive staff writer . She can be reached at jharrop@triblive.com . May 17 , 2025 7:00 pm $ 25 , $ 35 , $ 45 27 East Main Street , Uniontown , PA 15401 724-439-1360 StateTheatre.info