Cleveland is full of talented amateur and professional artists who commit their unique views of the city to canvas. Take Tremont, which has long been known for its art events (Jean Brandt’s Tremont ArtWalk, Walkabout Tremont and Tremont Arts & Cultural Festival); exhibit spaces (Barbara Merritt’s 818 Studios, Theresa Boyd’s Doubting Thomas and the galleries of Giancarlo Calicchia, Paul Duda and Rob Hartshorn); and rotating displays on the walls of restaurants such as Edison’s, Grumpy’s, Lava Lounge, Loop, Southside and The Treehouse.

But one of Tremont’s less-visible and most important artistic legacies is The Pretentious Tremont Artists of the Literary Café (“The Lit”). Founded in 1988 by local artists and residents Tim Herron and Brian Pierce, the group quickly grew into a small army of creative types, gathering regularly to produce portraits and, more relevant to this story, stunning and unique homages to the Tremont neighborhood.

The Pretentious Tremont Artists are the soul of a new exhibit that recently joined the forty-piece Tremont Art + History exhibit—a permanent outdoor collection of “Old Tremont” scenes created by long-ago painters, illustrators, engravers, architects, sculptors, photographers and colorists. The new installation, titled Contemporary Views of Tremont, consists of a dozen Tremont street scenes by (of course) Tim Herron and Brian Pierce, and other local artists who were part of (or perhaps inspired by) The Pretentious Artists troupe.

These all-weather digital reproductions were created in media ranging from pen and ink (Chris Deighan) and acrylic (Glenn Murray), to oil (Robin Roberts) and watercolor (Jeff Suntala). You can find the installation on a formerly nondescript wood fence at the corner of Professor and College Avenues. The exhibit is fully lit, so if you arrive in the middle of the night, the spirit of “The Lit” may be more apparent.

 

To see more art in Tremont, check out Walkabout Tremont for art, fashion, music, food, drink and entertainment the second Friday of each month from 5:00 to 10:00pm. Upcoming dates are May 8, June 12, July 10 and August 14: experiencetremont.com/featured-events.

WALKABOUT TREMONT

c/o Tremont West Development

2406 Professor Avenue

Cleveland, Ohio 44113

walkabouttremont.com

216.575.0920