The city of Pittsburgh encountered modern architecture through an ambitious program of urban revitalization in the 1950s and ’60s. HACLab Pittsburgh: Imagining the Modern untangles Pittsburgh’s complicated relationship with modern architecture and urban planning.

In this experimental presentation at Carnegie Museum of Art’s Heinz Architectural Center, architects-in-residence over,under highlight successive histories of pioneering architectural successes, disrupted neighborhoods, and the utopian aspirations and ideals of public officials and business leaders. These intertwined narratives shape the exhibition’s presentation, which includes abundant archival materials from the period, an active architecture studio, and a salon-style discussion space, all unearthing layers of history and a range of perspectives.

Through these stories, HACLab Pittsburgh demonstrates the city’s national influence in the development of the modern American city, and focus on several neighborhoods and sites, including Gateway Center, the Lower Hill, Allegheny Center, and Oakland.

About over,under

over,under is a Boston-based practice with expertise in architecture, urban design, and graphic design. The practice has designed projects in the United States, Guatemala, Egypt, Qatar, and the UAE. Previous exhibitions include Rethinking Boston City Hall (2007) and HEROIC (2009) at pinkcomma, Boston, and In Form: Communicating Boston (2012), Let’s Talk About Bikes (2012), and Design Biennial Boston (2013) at the Boston Society of Architects’ gallery BSA Space. The over,under team for HACLab Pittsburgh includes Rami el Samahy, Chris Grimley, Mark Pasnik (principals), Kelly Hutzell, Michael Kubo, and Ann Lui. El Samahy and Hutzell are faculty members at the School of Architecture, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh.