Dylan Vitone

The Pittsburgh Project

May 2 - June 30, 2008

These photographs are drawn from a project I have been working on for the past three years. I have been documenting Pittsburgh, a rustbelt town seated at the confluence of the Ohio, Allegheny and Monongahela rivers in the rolling hills of Western Pennsylvania. A century ago, the city became an economic hub that served as one of the nation's largest producers of steel, coal, glass and aluminum, attracting scores of European immigrants with the promise of work in the mills. As the city's economy boomed, its culture flourished, and Pittsburgh became home to one of the country's most prolific African American communities-the Hill District-as well as some of America's most influential families: the Carnegies, Rockefellers, Fricks, Heinzes, Hillmans and Mellons.

With the deindustrialization of the latter 20th century, Pittsburgh suffered a massive economic decline, losing half its population over the last 50 years alone. The city can no longer afford some of the most basic of municipal services, like plowing the streets in the winter or keeping public pools open in the summer. In recent years, the City of Pittsburgh has teetered on the verge of bankruptcy.

Today, Pittsburgh strives to diversify its economy. As area real estate is relatively inexpensive, such companies as Google and Apple are considering the incentives of moving into the city. The sites of what were once the largest steel mills in the country have been leveled in favor of luxury condos and shopping plazas. There is hope that things are changing for the better-only time will tell.

It is no accident that such a culturally rich and socioeconomically diverse city nestled in this dynamic landscape has fascinated photographers for more than 150 years, including such historically acclaimed image-makers as Lewis Hine, W. Eugene Smith and Margaret Bourke-White, to name a few. In continuation of the story they began documenting decades ago, I offer these panoramic images-assemblages of medium-format photographs that hopefully convey moments from Pittsburghers' everyday lives with breadth of scope and intimacy of detail.

Pittsburgh is more than an intersection of waterways connecting industries now gone by the wayside, the city is a confluence of cultures, classes, and the changing tides that keep them in constant flux, much like the rivers themselves. It is a place where a story familiar to cities across the country is unfolding at this very moment. In a sense, this project documents an entire nation's struggle to reconcile its history with the uncertainty of its future, and to reinvent itself anew.

Generally I assemble eight separate, medium-format negatives (shot with a Mamiya 7 on Ilford HP5) in Photoshop to create a full 360° view. I do no manipulation to the images other than adjustment of levels. They are then outputted on an Epson 7800 with Ultra Chrome Inks on Epson Enhanced Matte paper. The prints are 44 inch wide by 9 inch tall.

ABOUT THE ARTIST: Dylan Vitone is an Assistant Professor at Carnegie Mellon University. He holds a B.A. from St. Edward's University, and M.F.A. from Massachusetts College of Art. His photographs have been exhibited widely and his work is in the permanent collection at many institutions including the Museum of Contemporary Photography at Columbia College Chicago, George Eastman House, Smithsonian Institution, National Museum of American History, Harry Ransom Center, Portland Art Museum, and the Polaroid Collection. https://www.dylanvitone.com/