LATROBE, PA – A mural re-creation of Pierre Eugène Montézin’s “Le Lutin pres du Loing” will be unveiled to the public in downtown Latrobe on Thursday night, Dec. 4, during Light Up Latrobe and the Holiday Night Market.
Created in 1940, Montézin’s signed oil on canvas painting is housed in the Saint Vincent Art & Heritage Collections. A French painter born in 1874, Montézin spent most of his life in Paris before his death in 1946. “Le Lutin pres du Loing” was gifted by Michael and Aimee Rusinko Kakos.
The mural will be installed on the historic Danceland building, situated at the corner of Depot and Jefferson streets. The building, owned by Harry Lattanzio Jr., once hosted many top musicians from across the country. The artwork will be placed on the side of the building parallel to Denman Way and adjacent to James Hillis Rogers Memorial Park.
“It's an honor to be able to share this treasure from the Michael and Aimee Rusinko Kakos Collection of Impressionist and Post-Impressionist art with our neighbors in Latrobe and participate in the exciting work of the Downtown Latrobe Mural Art Initiative,” said Dr. Elizabeth Barker, director of the Verostko Center for the Arts and curator of the Saint Vincent Art & Heritage Collections. “We hope the sight of this tranquil river landscape will bring peace and happiness to everyone who sees it. And we'd be delighted if the glimpse of this French painting inspired people to visit the Verostko Center for the Arts at Saint Vincent College, where the changing program of exhibitions and events is free and open to all.”
The mural is scheduled to be unveiled at approximately 6:50 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 4, followed by the lighting of the downtown Christmas tree at 7 p.m. in the nearby park.
The Downtown Latrobe Mural Art Initiative is led by one of numerous committees that have been established through the Be My Neighbor Committee and made possible by the Richard King Mellon Foundation. The committee consists of representatives from Saint Vincent College, the Latrobe Community Revitalization Program (LCRP), the Greater Latrobe School District (GLSD) Art Conservation Trust and the Latrobe Art Center.
Steven Patricia, who serves as design architect for the LCRP, previously conducted a study that examined integrating select art pieces—originating from either the Saint Vincent Art & Heritage Collections or GLSD Art Conservation Trust—onto downtown historic buildings.
Montézin’s work will be the seventh installment from this initiative.
Other recent installations can be found on the historic Potthoff building (“Dark Hallow Falls,” Robert Cronauer), POSH ink + beauty building (“Father's Garden,” Marty Lewis Cornelius), and the Latrobe Art Center (“My East View,” Mary Martha Himler; “Tulips,” Bertha Gill Johnston; “Theme and Variations,” Dorothy Adams Gennaccaro; and “Butterfly,” Bernard Leon Sachs).
For up-to-date information about the Verostko Center's open hours and art on view, visit www.verostkocenter.org.
