Silver Eye

"I walk to the edge of the inhabited streets, and then, into the woods. Mysteries with clues about past lives and lives passing through fill the thicket. As I explore, I'm crossing a threshold into the city's recent, but hazy past, looking for stories - real and imagined - at the edge of the forest and beyond."

Pulling from his series, Hillsides, New England native and Pittsburgh transplant Sean Carroll looks to the unique topography of this city, and how its terrain has impacted built and urban spaces. Through climbing the maze of steps that trace the landscape of the city, to lowering his vantage point to look through alleyways or tree bushes, Carroll has gathered together images that reflect the strange and curious ways Pittsburgh demands its inhabitants and visitors alike consider how they traverse the city’s streets, hills and bridges. Indicating towards memories of the city's industrial past through an image of one of the many ubiquitous staircases that mill workers would use coming to and from their jobs, Carroll also includes moments of how the city feels today. Windows glow with Christmas lights in winter, and grey storm clouds gather amidst dramatic light on an afternoon in summer. The images in this installation keep viewers engaged with the distinctive rhythm of the city's topographic highs and lows, as we get a chance to briefly follow Carroll along on a trek across town.

Participating Artist

1. Sean Carroll is a photographer, bike rider, dad, and an outdoorsy kind of person from Massachusetts who has been living in Pittsburgh since 2016. He teaches photography at Carnegie Mellon University and works on a range of freelance photography projects throughout the region. You can find him biking around the streets of Pittsburgh, walking up city steps, and wandering around looking for things to photograph, often with his kids. He lives on a hillside in Lawrenceville, Pittsburgh and works from a studio at Radiant Hall nearby.