Author Description

Imagine walking along the two-hundred foot expanse of a charcoal and paper mural, the cityscape of Pittsburghs past and present unfolding before your eyes. You stop intermittently, spotting a particul Steel Shadows, you dont have to visit exhibition halls at Carnegie Mellon University or the John Heinz History Center to enjoy Douglas Coopers unique, realistic and highly personal images of Pittsburgh. Steel Shadows brings his large charcoal and paper art home to you. This unique collection of imagery and prose combines the personal with Coopers highly technical and intricate craft. Through narrative and illustration, Douglas Cooper will show you a Pittsburgh you know and love, but have never seen in quite this way before. Cooper details the inspiration for his artistic vision, as well as the formal properties of his art and how it relates to architecture. The book features double-page spreads and excerpts from Pittsburg) panoramic murals in Frankfurt, Germany, and in New York, Philadelphia, and Pittsburgh. A central theme of his work has been the overlay of the multiple meanings people attach to their surroundings. In three of his murals, Cooper has worked with the elderly and incorporated their stories into his art. Cooper has received grants for his work from the National Endowment for the Arts and has been honored by the American Institute of Architects for the contribution his murals have made to architecture.