Art and Poetry fused together to create a magical evening at the Closing Reception of the Pittsburgh Society of Artists 59th Annual! PSA collaborated with the Pittsburgh Poets for an Ekphrastic Poetry Reading which took place on Saturday night at Stifel Fine Arts Center. There was a great atmosphere in the gallery while artists and poets gathered to celebrate! Many thanks To our Exhibition Co-Chairs: Paula Martino and Andy Spanoudakis for their unwavering commitment. Thank you also to the staff of the Stifel Fine Arts Center for providing such a beautiful space. A special shout-out to Alyssa Sineni — who is a PSA member and also a member of the Pittsburgh Poetry Exchange. Alyssa tirelessly worked at streamlining and organizing last night‘s poetry reading. And, thanks To PSA volunteers including Martha Skarlinski, Jannick Wildberg and Craig Marcus for their help with transporting artwork and helping to publicize the event. Last, but certainly not least, a huge dose of gratitude for all of the participating artists for sharing their vision and talent with us! Also… Congratulations to Olena Abakumova for her Stifel Fine Arts Center people's choice award! Enjoy the following photos… Pictured are each poet alongside the artwork that inspired them! Below are the captions for the photos in the order that they appear: 1 Group photo of the 15 participating poets! 2 John Davis “Ocean Cappuccino” by Olena Abakumova 3 Shaheen Dil “Proud Plumage” by Betty Trout. 4 -Lenny Farrell “Shadows of Consciousness” by Jannick Wildberg 5 Lenny Farrell “Ladle Washout” by Joseph Gluz 6 Jai George “Awaken” by Jannick Wildberg. 7 Roberta Hatcher “I-79 Neville Island Bridge” by Andrew Spanoudakis 8 Alisa R. James “Woven” by Dawn Johnson 9 Bernie Lukacs “Aisha” by Yelena Kukharenko. 10 Nina Padolf “In the Mist” by Joanne Vennetti 11 Erik Rosen “Down Trenton” by Joanne Vennetti. 12 Alyssa Sineni “Curiosity Down The Hall” by Kristin Turcsanyi 13 Bob Walicki “Wheeling Pittsburgh Steel BOF” by Joseph Gluz and “Woven” by Dawn Johnson 14 Arlene Weiner “What the Immigrant Saw” by Paula Martino 15 Paul Zdrale Jr. “Tug Boats: McKeesport / Duquesne Bridge” by Ben Matthews 16 Emily De Ferrari “The Table Is Set” by Larry Brandstetter 17 Ziggy Edwards "Serpenteen" by Gary Henzler Allen 20 Congratulations to Olena Abakumova for her Stifel Fine Arts Center people's choice award! (fb)

Meet our 15 talented Pittsburgh poets, this Saturday, October 25, for our PSA 59th Annual Exhibition Ekphrastic Poetry Reading & Closing Reception! Doors open any 4:00 pm, Readings at 5:00 pm. At the Oglebay Institute Stifel Fine Arts Center 1330 National Road, Wheeling WV 26003 (fb)