Join authors Maxwell King and Louise Lippincott on Wednesday, June 15, for an engaging discussion about their new book, “American Workman: The Life and Art of John Kane,” recently published by the University of Pittsburgh Press.   

The authors will reveal their inspiration behind writing “American Workman,” which is a comprehensive and compelling account of John Kane – the turn-of-the-century Scottish immigrant who achieved breakthrough success as a painter after toiling for more than 40 years as a laborer in industrial-age Pittsburgh. 

Along with sharing stories from their research (including some not included in the book), King and Lippincott will discuss how their new scholarship inspired the History Center’s newest exhibition, Pittsburgh’s John Kane: The Life & Art of an American Workman.  

The exhibition features 37 original works of art from America’s most prestigious art museums and private collections, including The Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Smithsonian’s Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Carnegie Museum of Art, American Folk Art Museum, Detroit Institute of Arts, the Phillips Collection, and others. 

A book signing will follow the discussion. 

ADMISSION 

Admission is free for members (with member ID), $10 for the public, and free for kids 17 and under. Please register online. 

Books are available for purchase for $40 when you register. They are also available at the Museum Shop and will be available at the event. Following the discussion, the authors will sign books.

EVENT DETAILS

This is an in-person program at the Heinz History Center. Doors will open at 5:30 p.m. and the program will begin at 6:30 p.m. in the museum’s Mueller Center (fifth floor). 

All museum exhibits, including Pittsburgh’s John Kane, will be open from 5:30-8:30 p.m. 

A cash bar will be available throughout the event, and the History Center Museum Shop and Café will remain open until 6:30 p.m. to accommodate guests. 

Assistive Listening Devices will be available, and the talk will be accessible for those with mobility aides. The floorplan has also been designed to be ADA compliant.  

For more information, please contact Phoebe Walczak at pjwalczak@heinzhistorycenter.org or 412-454-6393.

Louise Lippincott is a historian and former curator specializing in American and European art from the Enlightenment to the modern era. She focuses on artists outside the mainstream, and the historical contexts that give meaning to their work. As curator of fine arts at Carnegie Museum of Art, she managed the largest John Kane collection in the United States. Previously she occupied curatorial positions at the J. Paul Getty Museum and Philadelphia Museum of Art.  ABOUT MAXWELL KING 

Maxwell King is the former editor of the Philadelphia Inquirer and president of the Heinz Endowments. He is the author of the poetry collection “Crossing Laurel Run” and the New York Times-bestselling Mister Rogers biography “The Good Neighbor: The Life and Work of Fred Rogers.” King also served as chairman of the board of the national Council on Foundations. His most recent job was president of The Pittsburgh Foundation.  

ABOUT LOUISE LIPPINCOTT