The Pittsburgh Technology Council showered kudos on regional artists who are breaking barriers technically and artistically with DATAs, Design, Art & Technology Awards.
"It's a whole new paradigm," says Audrey Russo. "Really, really smart people left to their own devices, doing that they do best."
"Artists and scientists are really not that different, especially if you sit down and have a few beers with them," adds John Friel, president and CEO of Medrad.
And with no further ado, the winners…
Artist of the Year, Eric Singer for his GuitarBot, a robotic four-string electric slide guitar, playable from a computer. The founder of LEMUR (League of Electronic Musical Urban Robots), singer's bots are currently on tour with Pat Methany.
Business Innovator of the Year, none other than deeplocal. Lead by Nathan Martin, deeplocal created the Nike Chalkbot for the 2009 Tour de France LIVESTRONG campaign and has received global attention.
Business of Creativity Award, David Edwards for his Power Flower #2, spinning metal petals that harvest wind energy and simultaneously collect sun energy.
15 Minutes Award, Jesse Best, an honor for excellence in 2-D visual art. Best is a filmmaker, animator and fine art painter whose work may be seen in "The Road" and "Unstoppable."
Musical Artist of the Year, David Bernado, for demonstrating excellence in sonic innovation. Bernabo has toured nationally, scored two Nintendo Wii games with Corey Layman and has a unique installation in the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh.
Video Artist of the Year, Ben Hernstrom, whose Young Creatives collection of mini-documentaries, created in collaboration with Pop City, glimpses the creative people who've found success in Pittsburgh and are making innovation happen here.
Gateway to the Arts Award, R. Weis, who discovered upon moving back to Pittsburgh after years in NYC that his 19th century home was a concert hall of sound.
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Writer: Deb Smit
Source: Audrey Russo and Kevin Lane, Pittsburgh Technology Council
Burton Morris's Poptics courtesy of Pittsburgh Technology Council