We are delighted to announce our successful application for a 1 million dollar grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation: (see University press release). For the next four years, these funds will support our plan to establish a Pittsburgh Constellations Consortium. Mellon assistance will allow us to solidify relationships between the Department of History of Art and Architecture and the extraordinarily rich cultural institutions that surround us in the city of Pittsburgh, including the Carnegie Museums, the Frick Art and Historical Center, the Heinz History Center and other local museums, galleries, archives, and libraries. “The Frick is thrilled to be a part of this collaboration with our colleagues at the University of Pittsburgh,” says Robin Nicholson, Director of the Frick Art and Historical Center. “It will further the mission and art historical research and teaching of both institutions.” Andy Masich, President and CEO, Heinz History Center adds: "The Heinz History Center is excited to be a part of the consortium. We see that our collections connect in so many way to the goals of the project." The Pittsburgh Constellations Consortium will build on our innovative Constellations program to create a mutually beneficial set of appointments, courses, internships, workshops, and other exchanges that will allow our students to acquire vital skills in object-centered, project-based collaborative research. It will also enable us to work with our Consortium partners to enhance public access to and understanding of their outstanding collections. The Mellon award was made at the beginning of January 2015 and we are now in the process of laying the foundation for this ambitious project. We’ll be sharing more details with you in the coming weeks and months as our Consortium gets underway!
