Beaver Falls gallery welcomes Aliquippa artist Marlon Gist’s 'Underground Railroad' series

BEAVER FALLS ― The Baby Bello, the pilot project of the future Portobello Cultural Life & Arts Center, welcomes artist Marlon Gist’s traveling “Underground Railroad” series for a six-week public exhibition Feb. 2 to March 15.

Along with the exhibition in the Beaver Falls center's newly designed gallery, there's a ticketed Opening/Meet the Artist event 7 p.m. Feb. 2, inviting guests to hear directly from Gist about his collection.

Tickets are on sale at thebellobuilding.com

"Underground Railroad" will be open for public viewing 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays through Fridays.

“My idea for this collection came from research and life experiences,” Gist, of Aliquippa, said in a press release. “I wanted people to see history in color, and to convey the real everyday struggle of enslaved Americans.”

Recognized as one of the Pittsburgh area’s premier emerging artists, Gist's artwork has been displayed at the Pittsburgh International Airport and across the United States.

His "Underground Railroad" series was created in partnership with The Genesis Collective and Neighborhood North Museum of Play in Beaver Falls. Ultimately, the collection will be on permanent exhibit at the Trib Building, the future Beaver Falls home of Neighborhood North Museum of Play.

Beginning Feb. 2, the community can view his "Underground Railroad" collection as the Baby Bello’s first formal exhibit. Accompanying the exhibit's run, Gist will facilitate a youth art class at Neighborhood North on Feb. 10 and a class for teens and adults sponsored by The Genesis Collective at Broken In2 Beautiful Mosaics at 2196 Duss Ave. in Ambridge (date to be announced.)

"The Genesis Collective is thrilled to partner with Baby Bello and Neighborhood North to expand the public's access to art and creativity, and to promote a new artistic interpretation of the events and important figures of the Underground Railroad,” Pamela Rossi-Keen, executive director of The Genesis Collective, said. “We love Marlon's work and the way he distills so much activity and meaning into his unique and vibrant canvases."

Committed to using its space for showcasing the work of a variety of artists year-round, the Baby Bello's artistic director, Joline Atkins, said “It was not lost on me that sharing this series with our local community and surrounding areas would be a necessary step for increasing our understanding of a history we are getting farther and farther removed from as years go by, and as policies are enacted to dampen that history.”

The Baby Bello’s “Seasonal Artist Spotlight Series” will continue throughout 2024, featuring artist experiences and events in digital, performing and written arts and also will include learning opportunities with The Genesis Collective and Neighborhood North.

The Baby Bello, in a former bank at 2200 Ninth Ave., Beaver Falls, is a new cultural life and arts center providing space to encourage and support opportunities for social connection, meaningful education, creative expression, civic engagement and personal/professional growth.

This article originally appeared on Beaver County Times: Marlon Gist’s 'Underground Railroad' series exhibit opening in Beaver Falls