Tag Archives: millvale

Maxo Vanka Murals

Maxo Vanka Murals & St. Nicholas Croatian Catholic Church in Millvale

Today’s preservation month post is inspired by the Millvale Musical Festival, which is happening on Saturday, May 13. Millvale continues to gain popularity as a destination for breweries, music, community projects and some impressive community events. If you are headed to Millvale then you need to know about the Maxo Vanka murals, which might be one of the best kept secrets in Pittsburgh.

If you are headed to Millvale for the music festival, you might want to take a little break to check these unique works of art. Even if you are not headed to the music festivals, the Maxo Vanka murals are worth an hour of your Saturday. More details on visiting the murals below.

Photo credit: St. Nicholas Church website.

From Route 28, St. Nicholas Croatian Catholic church looks like an unassuming church building that is tucked away on the bluff. Inside the church, the decor is anything but ordinary, the walls of the church are covered with 25 murals by the artist Maxo Vanka. What makes these church murals unique are the political statements found in several of the scenes. The Maxo Vanka murals have been compared to the works of Mexican muralist Diego Rivera and some of the murals of the Works Progress Administration artists.

Maxo Vanka Murals

Croatian Mother Raises Her Son for War, Maxo Vanka, 1937. Photo credit: Society to Preserve Millvale Murals of Maxo Vanka.

All of the murals can be viewed online here.

The other unique thing about the murals is that they have their own nonprofit that works to preserve, restore and promote the murals to an audience outside of the congregation. The Society to Preserve the Millvale Murals of Maxo Vanka was founded in 1991 and has worked to put the murals on the National Register of Historic Places.

If you are interested in learning more, start with the SPMMMV website at vankomurals.org.

Pittsburgh filmmaker Kenneth Love made a documentary about the murals in 2012, “Maxo Vanka’s Masterpiece: The Murals at St. Nicholas Church”. You can purchase a DVD of the documentary from the church.

Visiting the Maxo Vanka Murals

Docent led tours are held every Saturday at 11am, Noon and 1pm. Tours last about an hour. Note that tours may be cancelled or postponed due to parish activities. It is recommended that you register in advance for tours. Private tours are available on request.  If you are visiting Pittsburgh on a weekday, be sure to reach out for a tour or if the church is open, you should be able to stop by and see the murals in person.

More information on the VankaMurals.org website. The Society to Preserve the Millvale Murals of Maxo Vanka is also on Facebook.

WPA Murals in San Francisco’s Coit Tower

Detail of one of the murals in Coit Tower.

Last November, I had the good fortune to visit San Francisco. San Francisco has a nonprofit, SF City Guides, that offers free walking tours of a variety of places around the city. Since it was raining we opted for the indoor tour of Coit Tower on Telegraph Hill. If you enjoyed seeing the murals of Maxo Vanka, I highly recommend a visit to Coit Tower to see the fresco murals from the Works Progress Administration artists. The skill of the fresco artists is impressive and these murals also contain many political messages.

Urban Hike Heads to Millvale – Macaroons, Murals and More

Maxo Vanka Murals, Millvale - 1

Maxo Vanka Murals, Millvale – 1 (Photo credit: the justified sinner)

Urban Hike is one of the best ways to check out the city and meet some new folks.  The Urban Hike organizers have mapped out a route, found the best places to eat and lined up some local experts to share some local history.  This hike to Millvale will make a stop to see one of the best kept secrets in Western PA – the Maxo Vanka Murals.

Urban Hike Millvale

Saturday, July 19, 2014

10am – meet at Jean-March Chatellier’s French Bakery, 212 North Ave, Pittsburgh, PA 15209

Facebook Event – https://www.facebook.com/events/1439057913021684/

Join us for a 4-mile walk in Millvale this Saturday, July 19th. The hike begins at 10:00 a.m., but we suggest you arrive early to grab a treat from the highly-regarded Jean-Marc Chatellier’s French Bakery. As we hike, we’ll catch a couple of highlights in the business district, peak in on the Max Vanko murals, speak to some Franciscan nuns about their peaceful and eco-friendly Millvale home, and, as always, walk on residential streets to get the real feel of the neighborhood.

This hike is a bit flatter than most, but it’s still Pittsburgh, so there will be some hills and city steps. Come prepared with your walking shoes, a bottle of water and, if needed, an umbrella. We hike rain or shine.

Don’t let the parking meters on North and Grant Avenues fool you, they are free on weekends. Park wherever you can find a spot near the bakery.

If you have time after the hike, stick around for lunch at Sidelines Bar and Grill with the Urban Hike crew or brunch on your own at the original Pamela’s — the P&G Diner — which is within a block of our starting spot at Jean-Marc’s.

We look forward to seeing you on Saturday!

[fb_embed_post href=”https://www.facebook.com/events/1439057913021684//” width=”550″/]

View of Millvale (Photo Credit: Millvale Bogough Facebook Page)

View of Millvale (Photo Credit: Millvale Bogough Facebook Page)

Urban Hike Links

Best of the Fests – Beer, Music, Pgh Restaurants Week & More

Sorry for the delay in getting this posted.  A little late – but still lots of time to enjoy these weekend activities.

iron and beer in Millvale

Millvale Beer Fest

I wrote a similar statement yesterday, but August in Pittsburgh is awesome.   Those who have headed for the shore are missing out on some of the best the burgh has to offer.The weekend forecast is in the 70s and the fun cast is outstanding – check out these events – beer festivals, music festivals, a pool party and a free concert with Sharon Jones at Hartwood Acres.

http://storify.com/iheartpgh/august-is-awesome-pittsburgh-events-for-august-10

5 Reasons to Attend the Millvale Brewfest

Location of Millvale in Allegheny County

Image via Wikipedia

Just across the river from Lawrenceville, Millvale has got a ton of cool stuff going on:

  • New Sun Rising – a non profit organization that is supporting and funding more community projects in Millvale
  • The Saxifrage School – an innovative project that is getting started in a Millvale storefront to rethink college educations
  • Millvale Community Library – Millvale doesn’t have a library so the community is working to set one up.

You can drink beer and support Millvale this weeked at their annual Brew Fest.  The Millvale Brew Fest celebrates their 5th annual festival Saturday, August 13, 2011.  The Millvale brewfest is almost as old as IheartPGH and we can’t believe it has been 5 years since we blogged about the first festival.  We have attended some of the past festivals and it is a lovely way to spend an August afternoon.  One of the great things about this festival is that many members of the community come out to volunteer to make sure it is a success.  In the past the atmosphere of this festival has been super laid back, lots of nice people supporting Millvale.

In honor of the 5th anniversay here are 5 reasons why we think this is a great way to spend your Saturday:

1. Waterfront Refreshment

This is the only beer fest we know about that is held right next to the river.  The Millvale Brew Fest takes place at the Millvale riverfront park

2. Affordable Beer Festival Fun

Tickets for the Millvale Brew Fest are just $30 and available online here.  Designated Driver tickets are $12.  $30 is a steal compared to the price of some other popular Pittsburgh fall beer festivals.

3. Awesome Brew Festival Poster

We are about to hunt down one of these for the wall.  Designed by Millvale resident Tom Walker (who is also known as the guy who kayaks to his office in the Strip District).  Tom has been designing the brew fest posters for a few years.

4. It’s for a Good Cause.

The proceeds from the Millvale Brew Fest go to support the Nonprofit Millvale Borough Development Corporation and Millvale Main Street stabilize, revitalize and rejuvenate Millvale’s neighborhoods, through the development of housing, and businesses (and support the awesome projects listed above too).

5. Local Beer

While there are ton of breweries who will be at the fest or will have their beers served by a local distributor.  There are also a number of local brewers who will be there too – East End Brewing, Church Brew Works, Full Pint Brewing are just a few  of the confirmed breweries.

The Important Details:

Millvale Brew Fest
Saturday, August 13, 2011
1-4pm $30 Advance/$35
5-8pm SOLD OUT
http://www.millvalepa.com/BrewFest.aspx