The Last Billboard

Coordinates: 40°27′37″N 79°55′31″W / 40.46038°N 79.92516°W / 40.46038; -79.92516

The Last Billboard is a public art billboard in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The art piece consists of a 12-feet-by-36-feet steel frame billboard on which letters can be arranged.[1] Each month, artists are solicited to place a message on the billboard. It is curated by Jon Rubin. The billboard is located at the intersection of Highland Avenue and Baum Boulevard in the East Liberty neighborhood, above what was originally the building for Waffle Shop: A Reality Show, a restaurant that was also conceptualized by Jon Rubin.

Schedule of guest artists

2013

Month(s)ArtistMessage
JanuaryPackard Jenningsthese words hold / no power over you
MarchMichael Croweintellect versus emotion / intellect wins / emotion starts crying
MayAnthony Discenzathink game of thrones / meets okcupid meets car / talk meets gertrude stein / meet duran duran
JuneMaude Liottaquestions for my new blog: / who invented tape, / how were feelings discovered, / when did "skinny" become / fashionable.
JulyNina Katchadourianthe person standing / beside you, point at this / billboard, has brought you / here because it was too hard / to say "I am sorry" out loud.
AugustMarc Horowitz? / (323) 541 6361
NovemberJoshua Beckmanpoem 206 427 7792

2014

MonthsAuthorMessage
JanuaryMatt Shainphoto / food / beauty / liquor / rx
AprilCharlie Humphreyi wonder some days / if facebook isn't a broad / all encompassing / cry for help
MayAdam Frelinlet's put loudspeakers / on the roofs of hospitals // let's announce births / and deaths as they occur
JuneLenka Claytonthink about / all the hours / forgotten plays / were rehearsed
SeptemberThe Janks Archiveyou're so ugly that / you should be in a / museum of modern art
DecemberJason FulfordS A T O R / A R E P O / T E N E T / O P E R A / R O T A

2015

Months Artist Message
January - March Kim Beck today only / last chance! final day! / nothing held back / closing forever!
April Sarah Keeling ford & daughter / used tires / 704-370-3793 (varied by day)
May Pablo Helguera anulala a la luna
June Milena Bonilla the whole town's sleeping
July Paul Ramirez Jonas a i a / sky you sea / cloud crowd brook / hilltop company rivulet / highpoint multitude tributary
August Taylor Shields spry texts keep ducking up / ducking / duck / duck / nevermind
October Jonn Herschend close your eyes / and imagine that / i'm dancing so crazy fast

2016

Months Artist Message
February Jim Christensen anything / but / this
April Lenka Clayton tragically, / the world's oldest person / keeps dying.
June John Riegert just saw a hipster with / big headphones on top of / a knit cap, wearing a coat / i had worn for 20 years / and gave to goodwill.
July David Horvitz rachel carson / is my hero
October Micah Lexier a. f. k. / b. g. / c. h. / d. i. / e. j.
August Niel Farber and Michael Dumontier you don't have to / open every door. / a door labelled hell, / for instance.

2017

Months Artist Message
March Jon Rubin a man whose daily work / is rewriting history / tries to rebel / by falling in love
May Eric Gottesman do not react to this.
June Joseph Del Pesco you don't need a weatherman to tell which way the wind blows (following Part 1, a poem from Eugen Gomringer's book CONSTELLATIONS)
July Tamara Shopsin a tow truck / pulling / an ambulance
September Brett Yasko . / . / . . / . / . . / . / . / .
November Laure Prouvost ideally everything / will turn quiet / now

2018

Months Artist Message
March Alisha Wormsley there / are / black people / in the / future

Controversy

In March 2018, The Last Billboard's landlord, We Do Property, in response to complaints from community members who felt the sign was racist, removed Alisha Wormsley's text from the billboard[2]. Jon Rubin, the billboard's founder and creator, responded in a statement in response to the removal:

I believe in the power, poetry, and relevance of Alisha’s text and see absolutely no reason it should have been taken down. I find it tragically ironic, given East Liberty’s history and recent gentrification, that a text by an African American artist affirming a place in the future for black people is seen as unacceptable in the present.

A public panel discussion about the text and its removal is expected to be hosted by the Kelly Strayhorn Theater in April or May 2018.

References

  1. ↑ Riely, Kaitlynn. "East Liberty's Waffle Shop has the writings on the board". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved 7 October 2014.
  2. ↑ Rubin, Jon. "Statement on the removal of Alisha Wormsley's text "There are Black People in the Future."". Retrieved 5 April 2018.
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