Community engagement and social justice
Site-specific and integrated art
2-D art, including murals
Pittsburgh Creative Corps Artist Directory
Kirsten Ervin
Kirsten Ervin Art
Primary Discipline
Artistic Practice
Textile / fabric
Illustration / comics / graphic novels
Painting/works on paper/printmaking
Drawn Together: Portraits of Suzanne, 2022. Oil pastel, chalk pastel, color pencil, china marker, paper. 31″ x 24.”
Portraits of Furries with Portraits of Furries, 2022. Acrylic yarn, cotton yarn, wool yarn, machine tufted and hand punched, black velvet. 56″ x 38″ x 2″.
Peace on Earth, 2022. Assemblage of cardboard packaging. 20″ x 20″ x 14″.
Portrait of Walter & Minnie, 2021. Hooked rug made with strips of recycled wool garments, hand spun wool yarn, velvet. 36″ x 30″
Portraits on Penn, 2019. Chalk pastel, paper. 24″ x 19″. Part of a portrait series of people on Penn Avenue in East Liberty, created through an artist residency at the Kelly Strayhorn Theater.
About the Artist
Kirsten Ervin is a Pittsburgh-based artist exploring the intersection of illustration and fiber; ultimately her work is about human connection and joy. She believes in the power of art to animate and engage communities of people who don’t consider themselves to be artists. Most recently, Ervin facilitated fiber art workshops with Ukrainian and Turkish communities in Pittsburgh through a project between Rivers of Steel, Awesome Pittsburgh, and the Fiber Arts Guild of Pittsburgh. Ervin has created collaborative fiber art projects during residencies with both Project Art and The Children’s Museum. She created large-scale public portrait projects during residencies at The Kelly Strayhorn Theater and The Pittsburgh International Airport. Ervin’s own work has been featured at SPACE Gallery, Three Rivers Arts Festival, UnSmoke Systems, and others. Ervin teaches art at venues throughout Pittsburgh, including Contemporary Craft and Studio Forget Me Not, and sells her work at Argyle Studio She is a member of the Fiber Arts Guild of Pittsburgh, Associated Artists of Pittsburgh, and Group A. Ervin co-founded Creative Citizen Studios, an organization supporting artists with disabilities and was also one of the founders of Handmade Arcade, Pittsburgh’s largest craft fair. She and her husband Willard Simmons coordinate The Silver Apple Gallery, one of Pittsburgh’s smallest art venues.
Photo by Willard Simmons
Web
Accreditations, Certifications, and/or Awards
- Basic proficiency in American Sign Language;
- Experience providing accommodations for makers who are Blind/Visually Impaired, have physical disabilities, and or intellectual/developmental disabilities;
- Art & Social Practice Residency, Project Art, Carrick Library, Carrick, PA, 2019-2020;
- Fine Foundation Artist in Residence, Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh, 2019;
- Selected Fellow, Futuremakers Residency, Kelly Strayhorn Theater, Pittsburgh, PA, 2019
Provides Fabrication Services to Other Artists
No
Teaching Artist
Yes, all ages. Extensive experience adapting the art making process for people across the disability spectrum.
Joined the Directory
May 2023
Related
PROJECT
Pittsburgh Creative Corps
Designed in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Pittsburgh Creative Corps initiative engages artists and creative workers to activate the public realm while providing economic opportunity.
“Through public projects in illustration and fiber art, I aim to awaken the creativity and curiosity of everyday people and communities and use art to foster meaning and human connection.”
Kirsten Ervin
Contact the Artist
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Related
PROJECT
Pittsburgh Creative Corps
Designed in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Pittsburgh Creative Corps initiative engages artists and creative workers to activate the public realm while providing economic opportunity.
