Artist Name: Nigro, Ron Title: Consequences of Technology F.O.A Purchase Award Date: 2005 Art Ambassador’s Critical Response to Friends of Art Collection 2011: Anna D. Pittsburgh Gifted Center As a student of the Art Ambassador class, I came across a sculpture by Ron Nigro. His piece and many others are exhibited in the halls of the Pittsburgh Public Schools thanks to the Friends of Art. The mission of this organization is to have original art displayed in all of the Pittsburgh public schools, and I have been challenged to “Take A Closer Look” at the artist, Ron Nigro, and his three dimensional sculpture. During my observation of Nigro’s sculpture, “Consequences of Technology”, I’ve noticed how many different pieces of metal and found objects he used to create this work. Nigro uses wood as the base of the foundation because he states, “it will accept different glues, paints, and hardware to attach the metal scrap.” I feel as though this piece is very futuristic. “I’m not inclined to profess any particular message from my work.” These are Ron Nigro’s own words about this work. But, I feel as though this piece is futuristic, but futuristic people looking back on us and our work on technology. Art Ambassador’s Critical Response to Friends of Art Collection 2011: Sam G. Pittsburgh Gifted Center I chose to write about Ron Nigro because I am inspired by his sculpture, “Consequences of Technolgy.” This work takes the form of a weapon size sculpture which hangs from a wall. I believe the work symbolizes the effects of technology on people in the future. The piece, “Consequences of Technology,” is made from scraps of televisions and all sorts of mechanized items. This work is different from the artist’s more usual work which normally is placed on pedestals. Nigro says, “There is no particular message that he was trying to convey.” I guess that the artist was just making an abstract shape he thought looked, “cool!” The mixed media artist, Nigro, could have created this piece just for fun, or for some important cause. Maybe he said that there was no reason for making it, even though there really was a reason, because he didn’t feel like sharing his feelings about the work. I feel that this three dimensional work is very complicated, and it is hard to understand mainly because there seem to be so many meanings in this art work. I think the artist wants to say that technology will destroy us in the future. Art Ambassador’s Critical Response to Friends of Art Collection 2011: Sarah H. Pittsburgh Gifted Center Ron Nigro made an installation piece titled, “Consequences of Technology.” This piece is made of a variety of intricate wood pieces and either found or recycled bits of metal. Nigro’s sculpture was purchased by the Friends of Art in 2005 to be hung in a Pittsburgh public school. This artwork is aesthetically pleasing. It centers on vertical lines varying in length and width, tied together with horizontal lines and spheres. In observing this piece, my eye centers on a small rectangular plate overlapping an etched bronze disk near the lower section of the sculpture. The black planes in this work, pieced together, with the silver metal makes the bronze quite pronounced. The vertical lines draw the viewer’s eyes from the top to the bottom of this mixed media installation. In a written statement, Nigro said that he started this work at a wooden base. The artist, Nigro, had religious and architectural influences in this work, all evident in this large wall sculpture. He chose not to into details about any particular message, rather he leaves the meaning up to the viewer. Art Ambassador’s Critical Response to Friends of Art Collection 2011: Anita M. Pittsburgh Gifted Center As an Art Ambassador at Greenway, we are challenged to take a closer look at art, so I chose Ron Nigro’s “Consequences of Technology”. My middle school is where this piece is located. The Friends of Art organization purchased this sculpture in 2005 for the F.O.A. Collection. Ron Nigro is a sculptor who finds objects and assembles them to make three dimensional sculptures. In my observation, I saw that the sculpture is created out of metal, spare parts, radio antennas, and other founded objects. Nigro also uses wood too, because it can hold together all sorts of materials. To keep all of the objects together, he uses screws, glue and wire. The sculpture really stood out to me because it looks like something from the future. Ron Nigro’s “Consequence of Technology” is a very detailed piece. To me it looks like all the pieces are destined to be together. I think it shows how things may look in the future. But he said, “I’m not inclined to profess any particular message for my work.” Art Ambassador’s Critical Response to Friends of Art Collection 2011: Riley P. Pittsburgh Gifted Center As a student, I found Ron Nigro’s piece “Consequences of Technology” to stand out. Ron Nigro is a sculptor in Pittsburgh

so i finally reached my upgrade eligibility point. no, that doesn't mean i'm free of a contract, it just means i'm free to sign up for two more years of a contract and get a subsidized phone. it couldn't have come any sooner. the motorola v600 on the left bit the dust some time ago. its call speaker was so quiet that even in a silent room i had to jam it into my ear and hope i heard something. so the time had come to get a new one, and of course i go straight to the top with the - ahem - "cingular 8125." i really cringe at saying that, because damnit it's really an HTC Wizard. HTC has earned good karma by making featureful phones and - surprise! - actually selling them in america. cingular, on the other hand, is sleazier than a rusty oil drum full of used car salesmen. they have always been and always will be an Enemy of The Customer. they try to screw you at every turn, and in the rare occurance that you return the favor, they spread a ton of FUD and misinformation. such is the case with the MEdiaNet Unlimited plan i have. they used to sell it as an add-on package that had 1000 text messages a month, so many MMS messages that i never bothered to use, and the real score - unlimited GPRS data. not that it's fast, but if you need it it's good to have, and all that went for $19.99 a month. they got wise pretty quickly and pulled it, but for people like me who bought in, they're contractually obligated to provide that service until we cancel it. so of course cingular's reaction to this is to tell people at every opportunity that this package will not work with their new phone, they'll be required to upgrade to a $40 a month plan that does the same thing, they'll get a phone bill for hundreds of dollars, etc. LIES. NOT FUCKING TRUE, NOT ONE BIT. in the hours i've had this phone, i've used its data connection for pocket IE, pocket outlook, and tethering to the laptop via bluetooth. worked every time. i even created an SSH tunnel over Tor back to my main router and controlled VNC on the desktop through that. it wasn't fast but it got the job done. now here's what i don't understand: why are cingular and the other US carriers so damn hostile to their customers? why do they cheat us like this, and make us pay out the ass for service that would be - and IS - laughed at by the rest of the world? why do they overcharge us for shit phones that somebody's grandma wouldn't even use in japan or korea? ok, i get that there's a strong segment of joe sixpacks who just want a phone that makes calls. their solution already exists - prepaid phones. they're as basic as they come and no hassling with plans. but there are a lot of people like me who want a phone that looks cool and does a lot of useful things, and we want a fast omnipresent internet connection. and we don't want to pay $120 a month for it. the rest of the world HAS THIS ALREADY. it's not unreasonable to ask that we be given a break and get treated fairly.