Robert Burns dinner coming up. Should we go?
Phipps Conservatory and Robert Burns sculpture Pittsburgh, PA
Ink drawing by Carol Skinger. An 8 1/2 ” x 11″ print for $25 can be purchased here.
Each year the St. Andrews Society of Pittsburgh hosts a Robert Burns dinner including traditional piping in the haggis, Taste of Scotland Buffet, traditional toasts, and Burns recitations. Membership in the St. Andrew’s Society of Pittsburgh is open to men and women of all ages. The St. Andrew’s Society of Pittsburgh offers several classes of membership including those have no ancestral ties to Scotland, but have an interest in Scottish life and heritage.
It sounds sort of interesting since I have never done it before. I am not Scottish (WOOPS I forgot, turns out I am partly Scottish) and neither is my husband.
We do like scotch though and we did meet at a bar in Boston (really Brookline) called the Tam O’Shanter or simply the Tam which closed in the 90’s And later I did draw a tam o’shanter on Robert Burns head in my silly ink drawing of Phipps Conservatory and the Robert Burns statue in Oakland which is the university area in Pittsburgh.
Finally what I hope brings me to Scotland itself one day is to see at least some of or even all of the route of my mom’s bicycle trip there in August 1938 with her college roommate Jean. Her photo album of the trip includes the map and diary. Bucket list stuff…
Ink drawing Copyright Carol Skinger www.carolskinger.com
Schenley Park Illustrated Map
I am an artist myself and lover of nature and hiking. I found no decent map of Schenley Park when we moved here from Boston in the 80’s, so decided I would illustrate it myself having discovered acres of wonderful hiking trails many of them former bridal trails, just by being curious. My research in several historic archives lead me to a copy of a Depression era line drawing with no color , likely made for the 1939 anniversary. This is it! No one can beat the illustrative style of this historic drawing and it should be available. I LOVED the orientation of the drawing with East at the top. Unusual but so right for this park. All it needed was a brief history in the blank text box in the upper left, updated street names, and a few notes explaining some few elements that were illustrated but not built. Most important of all it needed an artist’s hand to add color, and I am an artist, so DONE! I created the color using color pencils. Later comparing it with the Frick Park illustrated map I added the red border which is so effective on the Frick Park map.
Perhaps you live near the park, or attend college in Oakland or run in the Pittsburgh Koman Race for the Cure. Have you ever watched the Pittsburgh Vintage Grand Prix in the summer? Did you read or see Perks of being a Wallflower and want to visit Schenley Park? You should!
This illustrated map is a great piece of artwork originally inked in the 1930’s, with many updates by me including color, that literally draws you (so to speak) into the park. Want to know more of the history of the park and it’s creation? Click here. And more info here.
I have now made the illustrated map available to see and order in the first public place inside the park itself: Schenley Park Cafe and Visitors Center . They have a large framed map right next to the counter where you order, and they keep a small inventory of the maps in 2 sizes. The Schenley Park Map of either size can always be ordered on my website here.
Schenley Park Cafe & Visitor Center Inside an Urban EcoSteward studies the map!
It is a great place to order lunch and take a walk onto the trails right out back of this charming building designed by Rutan and Russell . You also can plan catered events there!
If you order through my website it takes 3 or 4 days and there are options for shipping the print in a tube. It is available both as 30″ square as displayed there, or a smaller size 18″ square to match the height of the Frick Park Map. The Frick Map which is available at the shop at Frick Art and Historical Center in Point Breeze. If you want to see the Frick Park Map and how it relates to the Schenley Park Map I wrote about it here . You can always simply call me to order it. 412-401-8812.
What is shown in the illustrated Schenley Park Map, other than the park land, trails and park amenities? Carnegie Institute of Technology (now Carnegie Mellon University), The Cathedral of Learning at the University of Pittsburgh, Carnegie Library (Main Branch) Pittsburgh, Forbes Field, Phipps Conservatory, Greenfield Bridge, Panther Hollow Bridge, Charles Anderson Bridge.