Events

My first tabled market, set up at Velum Fermentation during a packed South Side weekend (pierogi-eating contest, pet costume context, and the whole city buzzing with NFL Draft energy). I brought a full booth: two display tables and a pair of gridwalls hung with originals and prints, plus my newest postcards. I even got to dance with Hannah Jalapeño (watch on IG), which felt fitting for an artist who draws Pittsburgh's icons for a living. 😆

Tucked in a back corner on a rainy afternoon, the setup still pulled people in. My new postcards were a hit, conversations were good, and I walked away with a commission request from a local restaurant. Not bad for my first official market, and a reminder that the work travels well beyond the neighborhoods it's drawn in.

Art All Night is one of Pittsburgh's best traditions: a free, all-welcome, around-the-clock show where the whole city's creativity ends up on the walls. I hung my "Bananas" original and got to meet Scott Kowalski, the Pittsburgh artist and muralist who helped organize the night's live painting and art auction. But the what I'm proudest of from that night wasn't on a wall at all. I played a set on the Coffeehouse Stage, the first time my visual art and my music shared the same room.

Nothing about that night was transactional, and that was the point. It was a reminder of why I love making art in this city in the first place, and the first hint of something I didn't originally forsee: shows where art and music happen together. Already looking forward to next year!

My first solo feature: a month-long show at Tazza D'oro in Highland Park, with nineteen pieces on the walls. Tazza invited me to take over their walls after seeing my work at their December holiday market.

The work moved from day one. The Highland Park Houses original sold during setup, before the show even opened. After that, something sold nearly every day of the residency: originals of the Heinz Ketchup Bottle and the Kennywood Dog & OG Beer, a steady run of prints, and even online orders from the QR codes on each label (including my first out-of-state sale). Several Tazza regulars bought pieces of the places they see every day. I met so many new friends and neighbors and was delighted by the stories of what their purchase meant to them.

My very first art market! I live near and love this coffee shop. I'm on the email list so I was notified about their call for artists. Since I had recently started to noticed an increase in people asking me about prints, I decided to go ahead and follow the thread and see if I could sell anything.

I featured prints of the following pieces:

• Tazza D'oro
• Park Place Pub
• Row House
• Bryant Street Market
• Biddle's Escape
• Mr. Smalls Theater

I ended up selling 11 prints and made $267, which was more than I spent creating the prints. Sharing for transparency, as someone who wished I had more mentors as a baby art entrepreneur. ❤️