Recent Awesome Pittsburgh grant recipient Steve Gurysh is the co-founder and co-director—along with Scott Andrew—of the Drift, an artist-run platform that creates temporary art while exploring the three rivers in Pittsburgh. H3O/OO3 is one in a series of single evening performances held beneath the Veteran’s Bridge along the north shore of the Allegheny River that includes architectural scale video projections, live music, and interactive art–all free and open to the public. The most recent event took place on September 25, when H3O/003 partnered with Venture Outdoors to offer a custom-guided night paddle for kayakers. An additional partnership with the Center for Urban Intervention Research facilitated the technical production.

The Drift operates with very few resources, and leverages key community partnerships to engage city residents and inform city officials about how Pittsburgh’s waterways can be put to better use. Mr. Gurysh, who earned his MFA at Carnegie Mellon University in 2013, reports:

It is the mission of the Drift to transform the waterways in our city into a destination for cultural expression and ecological encounter. We hope to bring both local and international artists to create an ephemeral but lasting impression on our city’s most valuable yet underutilized resources.

The project focuses on two themes: identity in the digital age and Pittsburgh’s relationship to water in the era of climate-change. Awesome Pittsburgh trustee Soraya Alexander was inspired by this project:

Our community is lucky to be presented with compelling and innovative artwork in such an incredibly unique venue. Notably, over half of the participating artists and musicians identified as female and/or people of color. I went out on the night paddle to view the show and we spent almost three hours on the water surrounded by the art and the city lights. It was really magical!

Awesome grant money was used to pay participating visual artists a small honorarium for their efforts and time. Watch video coverage of the event. Check out video coverage of the event.