The Gallery At Steel Pixel Studios

Steel Pixel Studios

For each exhibition at The Gallery at Steel Pixel Studios, we will publish audio descriptions of all the pieces on display. Each exhibition will be published as a season of the show and each piece will have it's own dedicated episode.

  1. Untitled found by Melissa R. Strom

    05/15/2023

    Untitled found by Melissa R. Strom

    “Untitled” Found broken transistor radio 2.375 x 0.875 x 3.25 inches Found in 2022 by Melissa R. Strom This piece of art is a found object. It is a small, green-gray, rectangular transistor radio. Covering about half of the front of the radio is a silver speaker that has a circular indentation pressed into it. There appears to be a few small areas where the metal speaker is stained or scratched.  On the front of the speaker, the text “Westinghouse” is written in tall and narrow, metal, blocky letters. To the right of the text is a small metal crown emblem, underlined, and centered in the middle of a thin circle. All of the metal is silver in color. The same circled and underlined crown emblem is situated in the bottom, left corner of the speaker as well. In this area, the flat, metal speaker appears to be starting to peel away from the rest of the radio’s plastic body. Along the bottom left side of the radio is a crack in the green-gray plastic. At the top of the left side is what appears to be a small hole, where an attachment may be plugged into the radio. Along the top left and the top right sides, there are two areas where a dial can be spun. The top dial does not appear to change anything. The right dial causes a thin white number to appear in a small window next to the logo on the speaker. It can be turned to 53, 6, 7, 10, or 16, moving from the upper portion of the numbers to the lower. On the rear surface of the radio appears to be a horizontal, rectangular vent. There are slats that go in two opposing directions that meet at the middle. Above the vent in small, raised letters reads the text, “6TRANSISTOR” upside down. This object was not manipulated by the artist, who found the object as it was. Welcome to the Real World will be on display at The Gallery at Steel Pixel Studios from May 15-July 7, 2023. There will be an artist reception on May 25 from 6:30-8pm. The Gallery at Steel Pixel Studios is located at 701 N New St. FL1, Bethlehem, PA 18018.

    2 min
  2. $953 by Melissa R. Strom

    05/15/2023

    $953 by Melissa R. Strom

    "$953" Created in 2023 by Melissa R. Strom Acrylic, receipts, glue on found fabric on canvas 8 x 24 inches This piece of artwork is made of a long, narrow, vertical canvas wrapped in plaid fabric that the artist found. It has a green, red, and tan plaid pattern on it. About three quarters of the way in from the left, there is a long seam that runs down from the top to the bottom of the canvas. It appears that the fabric was cut and shifted so that the plaid pattern no longer matches up with the fabric it meets at the seam. On top of the fabric, pieces of torn-up receipts and checks have been glued, some of which still have the items and store names legible. Some wrap around the right edges of the canvas. On top of this, there is white acrylic paint that obscures some of the receipts, checks, and the pattern of the fabric. Letters have been stenciled out of the paint to read “58.8 cents per dollar” and “37% of men’s median income” running sideways down the left side of the canvas. Some of the plaid is clearly visible through the letters to the furthermost left.. The letters are easier to read in some places than in others, as they overlap diagonally under layers of paint. Although difficult to read, after careful scrutiny, viewers will find statistics on the status of women’s income in the United States from the years 1950 and 1975. In 1950, women who worked full-time all year received 58.8 cents for every dollar earned by men. In 1975, women’s median income was $953, or 37% of men’s median income. Continuing to engage pattern shifts in her work, a bed of plaid is interrupted by layers of receipts for items such as food and other necessities, mailed bills, and checks that the artist collected over time from their own travels and encounters. She considers these items to be tokens from the so-called “real world.”  Welcome to the Real World will be on display at The Gallery at Steel Pixel Studios from May 15-July 7, 2023. There will be an artist reception on May 25 from 6:30-8pm and a closing reception on June 28 from 6:30-8pm. The Gallery at Steel Pixel Studios is located at 701 N New St. FL1, Bethlehem, PA 18018.

    1 min
  3. Job Switching by Melissa R. Strom

    05/15/2023

    Job Switching by Melissa R. Strom

    "Job Switching" Created in 2022 by Melissa R. Strom Broken VHS tape, ink, soft gel on polyester  20 x 24 inches  On a clear piece of polystyrene, the words “I've never been so bored in my life” are hand painted, spaced over the majority of the entire piece in a thick black ink. Layered over top of the text are the smashed bits and pieces of a black VHS tape. Most of the outer casing of the VHS tape sits in the top right corner of the piece. Although the center of it is smashed, we can see the text reading, “I Love Lucy.” The inner tape of the VHS spills and curls down the artwork, wrapping around the clear, circular plastic film reel. Bits of black and clear plastic from the smashed tape are sprinkled around the piece. During the taping of I Love Lucy, season 2, episode 1 titled “Job Switching” (1952), Lucy andEthel go to work in a candy factory as their husbands do the housework. During the candystriping scene, Lucille Ball allegedly worked on set with Amanda Milligan, a worker at See’sCandies in Los Angeles, painting the swirls atop chocolates. As the story goes, when Lucyasked Milligan if she enjoyed her stint in show business, she responded, "To be honest, I'venever been so bored in my life." Supposedly, her favorite pastimes were watching Mondayevening wrestling on television and candy dipping. “Job Switching” is one of the most infamousepisodes of the show to this day. Welcome to the Real World will be on display at The Gallery at Steel Pixel Studios from May 15-July 7, 2023. There will be an artist reception on May 25 from 6:30-8pm. The Gallery at Steel Pixel Studios is located at 701 N New St. FL1, Bethlehem, PA 18018.

    1 min

About

For each exhibition at The Gallery at Steel Pixel Studios, we will publish audio descriptions of all the pieces on display. Each exhibition will be published as a season of the show and each piece will have it's own dedicated episode.