VINCE ORNATO

Artist’s statement: "Although I am interested in many subjects, my prime focus is to paint the industrial history of the Pittsburgh area in the positive light it deserves. With my paintings, I hope to pay tribute to the workers and their families. Politicians and the barons of industry receive the notoriety, but without the blue-collar workers laboring with their hands nothing gets done."

"The current “politically correct” view of our past, which myopically focuses on pollution, ignores that Pittsburgh’s smoke improved life in America, Europe and elsewhere. Many workers did not finish high school or were illiterate, yet hundreds of thousands of their kids went to college. The factories were the economic engine that produced the area’s great universities, world class hospitals, skyscrapers, sports arenas, large country parks and other amenities which we enjoy today. Honoring the contribution of those who came before us empowers and strengthens the souls of today."

Vince Ornato has made a full-time living drawing and painting for over 30 years. He started as a sketch-portrait artist, graphic designer and sign painter, before selling his own personal work. He has a Bachelor’s Degree from Pitt in English Writing, and Rhetoric, and is a graduate of the Art Institute of Pittsburgh’s Evening School. His art studies continued with persistent practice and by taking workshops with prominent artists, most notably Daniel Greene from New York, for whom he worked as a classroom assistant.

He had a one-person show at the Art Institute of Pittsburgh and has exhibited at a large number of local galleries and shops. He sells his paintings and prints in the area’s major festival, from his home studio in Northside and over the internet. Commissions are accepted.

Vince has taught at Seton Hill University, and conducted workshops and done demonstrations for various art groups, including the Pittsburgh Center for the Arts. His website is www.VinceTheArtist.com .

Additionally, he is often hired to draw caricatures of people at parties, weddings, senior facilities and for business promotions. His caricature website is www.IdrawFaces.com. He has drawn caricatures live on ESPN TV, and appeared on all local TV stations.

His new TV show, produced through Bethel Park TV, “The Creative Process with Vince Ornato,” can be seen on YouTube, Comcast 7 and Verizon 32.

Vince Ornato is a life long Pittsburgher, who worked as a union ironworker out of Pittsburgh Local #3 for over six years, which is where a lot of his inspiration comes from, as well as how he paid for his college education. He recalls the sweat, paint, smell, dirt and noise of the mill, not to mention it's strength and power. He is a graduate of South Hills Catholic high school, and grew up in the Brookline neighborhood of the 'Burgh. Five trips to Italy have further served as inspiration for his work.

Vince Ornato

515 Avery Street, 2nd Floor

Pittsburgh, PA 15212

412-321-3508

vince@idrawfaces.com

To view Vince Ornato's fine Art work, Go to ...

www.vincetheartist.com

Featuring images of Pittsburgh Industrial, Italy, Golf and Portraits