Public Utility Commission

Public Utility Commission opens at SPACE Gallery on Friday, October 30, and runs through Sunday, March 7. Curated by Jacquet Kehm and presented by the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust, it's a group exhibition that takes its title from the regulatory body that oversees essential services like water, gas, electricity, rail and transportation—a body that, in practice, has often been captured by private corporations with monopolistic reach.

From there, the show asks how such a commission might behave in the era of data center buildouts, and what 'public utility' would look like if it were devoted to the small problems and solutions of making life more functional, with governance as a working partner. It's a reflection on privatization and on fundamental questions of the human spirit: what we owe one another and our shared responsibilities to those beside us, while predatory forces pollute and diminish the spaces we hold together.

The exhibition brings together sixteen artists from across the Atlantic and from right here in the region. The lineup includes Peter Barbor, David Bernabo, Julia Betts, David L. Byrne, Bastien Cuenot, Joseph Lupo, Ross Mantle, Paolo Pedercini, Paolo Piscitelli, Elizabeth Saloka, Jordan Sullivan, Ivan Sotnikov Jr., Ben Tolman, Sophie Thompson, Mark Wagner and Nasir Young. They come from England, France, Italy and the Republic of Georgia, as well as from Lancaster, Morgantown, Philadelphia, New York City and Pittsburgh.

SPACE Gallery is at 812 Liberty Ave in Downtown Pittsburgh. Admission is free. The gallery is open 11 AM to 5 PM, with an opening reception on Friday, October 30, starting at 5:30 PM.