The more than 700 sets of public steps that stretch through Pittsburgh’s neighborhoods have long been a treasured part of the scenic hilly landscape. One set just got better.
Oakley Street, on the South Side Slopes, sports a vibrantly colored tile mosaic designed and installed by ceramist Laura Jean McLaughlin with the help of local residents. The 77 steps form the pedestrian extension of 27th Street, rising from its intersection with Josephine Street.
The tiles, which were imported from Italy, are resistant to freeze-thaw cycles. More than 20 colors were used, and more than 35,000 tile pieces were placed.
The South Side Slopes Neighborhood Association, inspired by artworks on steps in other cities, formed a committee two years ago to investigate the feasibility of a similar project here. Ms. McLaughlin, whose studio is in Garfield, was selected for her experience and enthusiasm for the community aspect of the project.
The artist, whose sculpture is widely exhibited, has created more than 100 mosaic works throughout the region for public and private patrons. She also installed a work in Denmark in collaboration with ceramist Kevin Snipes.
She bid low — $6,000 — because the project appealed to her. The association raised the money through crowdsourcing.
“I really wanted to do it,” Ms. McLaughlin said. “And working with the community is so important. I just loved that aspect of it.”
One reason the Oakley Street steps were chosen was because they are heavily used and are near a bus stop, she said.
To encourage community input, Ms. McLaughlin suggested three workshops, which expanded to seven. “They were idea-generating sessions open to anybody, and a lot of people came out.”
Most were Slopes residents, but others came from as far as Butler. “Over 100 people worked on it,” she said, citing Carlow University intern Madison Harding and friend Crissy Clark as being particularly steadfast. Slopes residents also pitched in with other services, such as providing space to store the tiles.
The workshops explored subjects and feelings that people wanted the steps to represent, Ms. McLaughlin said.
“They wanted to reference the past and also look into the future. For example, the steel mills with flowers coming out of the smokestacks instead of smoke. They wanted to recognize the workers who used the steps to get to the mills and home every day and also the nature found on today’s Slopes.”
When the subject matter was decided, Ms. McLaughlin drew out the mosaic on a long paper, then transferred it to templates on boards for each of the 77 risers. Volunteers attended a workshop to learn how to correctly affix the tile pieces to the boards’ mesh frameworks, and took them home to finish them. People of all ages participated, she said, and only one group didn’t come through. She shrugged it off, saying one out of 77 wasn’t so bad.
“They were college students and eventually stopped returning our calls. We had to remake that board.”
Finally, Ms. McLaughlin mortared and grouted the boards onto the step risers.
“We began the actual tiling in July, and it went pretty fast,” she said. The project was completed in the first week of October.
A high point for Ms. McLaughlin was an exchange with one of the women who was helping.
“She said, ‘Thank you so much. I’ve lived on my street for 20 years and never talked with my neighbors. We sat down together, and we talked about this project.’”
M. Thomas: mthomas@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1925.
First Published: November 26, 2016, 5:00 a.m.
