Grand opening of Iron & Steel Gallery with the photographyexhibit

Tag : Steel 201

In Johnstown, there will be a new exibition of the history of steel.“Steel: Made in Pennsylvania,” a photography exhibit byState Museum of Pennsylvania photographer Donald Giles, will openthe Iron & Steel Gallery at 7 tonight at Heritage Discovery Center,201 Sixth Ave. in the Cambria City section of Johnstown.

Shelley Johansson, marketing manager for Johnstown Area HeritageAssociation, said the space for the gallery was created as part ofrecent renovations at the discovery center.

“It was done in preparation for the children’smuseum,” Johansson said.

“It’s a tall, three-story gallery in the right frontcorner of that first building before the courtyard.”

The striking photographs of active and abandoned steel mills acrossPennsylvania are set in rustic steel frames on the brick walls ofthe gallery.

Before the exhibit was installed at the discovery center, JAHAretained Giles to photograph the remaining steel operations inJohnstown, including Gautier Steel and Johnstown Wire Technologies.

“The Community Foundation for the Alleghenies made itpossible to retain the photographer to take shots of steeloperations in Johnstown,” Johansson said.

“We can augment the exhibit with local shots.”

A ramp along the wall gives visitors access to all three stories ofthe gallery, which evoke a steel mill environment.

“It’s a neat presentation of the buildingitself,” Johansson said.

“It’s well-suited to the display. It has a dramaticsense of industrial space.”

After viewing the exhibit on Saturday, visitors can drop by theethnic social club, where complimentary nonalcoholic beverages willbe offered and a cash bar will be available.

“It’s on the fourth floor on the other side of thebuilding,” Johansson said.

“The bar and tables and chairs are from actual social clubsthat have closed. Everyone loves it. It has a player piano.”

Reservations aren’t required for a stop at the social clubtoday, but those planning to attend can give Johansson an idea ofattendance by calling 539-1889.

The photography exhibit is temporary, while films in a theater onthe first level will be a permanent fixture.

The theater is completed, but the presentation of “TheMystery of Steel” isn’t expected to premiere untilSeptember.

“It will be an experience that includes rumbling speakers inthe seats to show the noise and infrared lights to show theheat,” Johansson said.

“We haven’t been sure how to tell the steel story, andwe wanted to capture it before it disappears.”

The film will document Johnstown’s role in the early steelindustry and will include high-definition footage from CharlesGuggenheim, who JAHA commissioned to shoot at Bethlehem Steelbefore the mills closed in the early 1990s.

“Johnstown’s role in the history of steel wasintegral,” Johansson said.

“Johnstown was the Silicon Valley of the steel industry. Theindustry’s brightest minds were sent to Johnstown to learnhow to make steel.”

Whatever is on display in the gallery, “The Mystery ofSteel” will be shown as part of the exhibit.

“Exhibitions will always be about the steel industry,”Johansson said.

“It’s something Johnstown can be proud of, and wedon’t think it has been told that well.”

The Iron & Steel Gallery will be open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. sevendays a week year-round, the discovery center’s normaloperating hours.

There will be extended hours from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Fridays andSaturdays through Labor Day.

Admission to the new gallery will be included in the combinationmuseum ticket, which includes the discovery center and JohnstownFlood Museum.

Admission prices are $6 for adults, $5 for seniors and $4 forstudents.



Reception

What: Grand opening of Iron & Steel Gallery with the photographyexhibit “Steel: Made in Pennsylvania.”