Studies for the Big Steel Tour
by Ken Wyten

June 3 - July 18, 2003
Erie Art Museum Frame Shop Gallery

A series of small, wall mounted sculptures make up this exhibition by Ken Wyten. These sculptures are small scale studies for larger works which will be displayed as a series of exhibitions and installations at various venues within the "Rivers of Steel National Heritage Area." The Heritage Area was created by Congress and the State of Pennsylvania and includes seven counties in southwestern Pennsylvania; the area is meant to preserve and interpret the history of the steel industry.

Wyten’s forms recall the ideals of the steel industry at its height. Strength and boldness was not only present in the workers of the mills, but also in the forms they created, and in the men such as Andrew Carnegie whose business acumen propelled them to the top. Wyten has not only echoed the steel industry in his choice of form, but also in his methods. He has created works with a highly refined and machined construction, but he has added a rusted finish to portray the conflicts of the Heritage Area and its people, as the industry that once was its backbone is now virtually gone.

Wyten began his study of the arts at the School of Visual Arts in New York. He later received his Bachelor of Arts from Mercyhurst College and his Master of Education from Edinboro State University. Wyten taught for many years for the School District of the City of Erie and also as an adjunct faculty member of Edinboro University. He has exhibited extensively at galleries throughout the area including 505 Gallery in Washington, La Fond Gallery in Pittsburgh, the Hoyt Institute of Art, the Society of Sculptors in Pittsburgh and many more.