Photo by Jason Cohn

Pittsburgh Allderdice graduate Jo-Anne Bates was named Pittsburgh Center for the Arts 2017 Artist of the Year.  The Artist of the Year award annually recognizes an individual, established in their field, who has displayed significant and enduring artistic contributions to the region. This year’s winner, mixed-media printmaker and installation artist JoAnne Bates, discovered an affinity for printmaking as a student and continued to advance in the medium as an art teacher and coordinator at Pittsburgh’s CAPA High School. Seeking ways to add a sculptural element to the flat surface of print work, Bates experiments with additions of folded paper, glue, shredded junk mail, and multiple layers of ink. The end result of each piece is a mystery until completion, even to the artist herself: “I am always excited and pleasantly surprised at the results when the final print is pulled from the press!” Bates is a longtime member of Women of Visions, Inc., a Pittsburgh-based artist guild dedicated to exhibiting, mentoring, and supporting art created by African-American women.

Ms. Bates has an exhibition, Changing Colors by Jo-Anne Bates, on display at Pittsburgh Center for the Arts until Sunday, February 11, 2018.  The exhibition debuts a series of mixed-media prints that, with the reintroduction of textual statements to her arsenal, represent a culmination of her experiences as a woman, mother, grandmother, and educator. The injustice young African-American men and women face will also inform the work, as evidenced by pieces entitled “Black Lives Matter” and “Black vs. Blue Don’t Shoot.” The last piece in the show will be an art installation that welcomes the participation of the local community.

Jo-Anne Bates has had an extensive career as an artist and arts educator. After 29 years with the Pittsburgh Public School System, Bates has devoted her time to her artwork and serving on various committees, such as the Carnegie Institute, Museum of Art, Education Committee, Pittsburgh, PA; and Chairman, Friends of Art for the Pittsburgh Public Schools. Bates is professionally affiliated with such organizations as the Pittsburgh Print Group, Associated Artists of Pittsburgh National Conference of Artists; Manchester Craftsmen’s Guild; Society for Contemporary Crafts; and Women of Visions, Pittsburgh, PA; among others. Bates has received numerous awards for printmaking, and she has held solo exhibitions in Pennsylvania, New York, Massachusetts, and West Virginia.