ANGST & TANTRUM FURNITURE COLLECTION AT LAST YEAR’S EXHIBIT. PHOTO COURTESY TEMPER AND GRIT

Here’s your chance to catch up with what’s being made in Pittsburgh. 

Now through Feb. 25, the Pittsburgh Glass Center in Garfield is hosting Clearly New, its fourth annual exhibition with Monmade that showcases regionally made and manufactured products. 

“Their business knowledge and help and insight that they offer to our glass artists to help them scale up their business is invaluable,” says Pittsburgh Glass Center marketing director Paige Ilkhanipour of pairing up with Monmade, a platform for local makers. “It’s really great to have that other important component about business and marketing and also the networking opportunities that our glass artists have with the other makers in the community to develop collaborations and partnerships.” 

While the exhibition is hosted at the glass center, not all of the pieces will be made from glass. 

“I would say we have a great emphasis on ceramics and wood and glass, obviously, as well as lots of metal as well,” says Julia Reynolds, products and exhibitions specialist at Monmade.

After going through a relaunch, Monmade also is using the exhibition as an opportunity to work with artists that it had worked with in the past, as well as expand beyond that network.  

“We will be rebuilding the catalogue to feature more products and even more designers that we’re excited to work with; So that includes new and old people from our network,” adds Reynolds. 

The refreshed catalogue will include furnishings, fixtures and tiles. The relaunch will also reflect Monmade’s deeper commitment to sustainability, including more transparency about how a product is made.

“I think it came about naturally that working with local craftspeople and the materials that they traditionally use, we saw a really great opportunity to deepen our commitment to both social, economic, and environmental impact through the products that we showcase and the designers that we feature,” says Reynolds. 

According to Illkhanipour, the exhibition is a way for everyone in the Pittsburgh community to take part in the unique art the city has to offer. 

“[Pittsburgh Glass Center’s] mission is really all about building a glass art community here that’s thriving…and this sort of exhibition with Monmade really brings it all together,” she says.