CP Photo: Derek Maiolo
Brenda Maser at Maser Galleries
In preparation for a big event this Friday, the sign at the entrance to Maser Galleries in Shadyside says “closed,” but anyone who opens the door receives a warm welcome from Brenda Maser. Brenda has run the gallery for the last 50 years with her husband, Ron, known to everyone as “Lefty.”
“Just excuse the mess,” Brenda tells one couple on Tuesday, gesturing to stacks of canvases leaning on other canvases yet to be put on display.
Maser Galleries, an anchor of the art community in Pittsburgh and beyond, is celebrating its 50th anniversary on Friday, Sept. 27 with a party at this flagship location on Walnut St.
Photo: Courtesy of Brenda Maser
Brenda Maser and Ron "Lefty" Maser at Maser Galleries in 1990
The gallery boasts a vast inventory of paintings and limited edition works on canvas and paper. Many of them will be for sale at reduced prices for the anniversary event, which will also feature beer donated by Brew Gentlemen, food from Shady Grove, a kids’ crafts table, music, and a silent auction benefiting For Good PGH — the nonprofit founded by the Masers’ daughter, Kristen, along with Gisele Fetterman.
The gallery’s longevity can be attributed to the dynamic between Lefty and Brenda. Where Lefty has a keen eye for aesthetics and the charisma to navigate the fickle world of fine art, Brenda is adept at handling the day-to-day logistics of running a business, Brenda tells Pittsburgh City Paper. The two met back when Lefty operated the gallery at Seven Springs Mountain Resort. Brenda grew up in the area and would stop by to enjoy the art on display.
“I tried to hustle my paintings there,” she says. “He didn’t accept them.”
Instead, he offered her a job at the gallery. Over the decades, the two have sold pieces by some of the biggest names in art — the likes of Andy Warhol, Bernie Fuchs and LeRoy Neiman.
Photo: Courtesy of Brenda Maser
Artist LeRoy Neiman with Brenda Maser
The nickname “Lefty” harkens back to Ron’s days as a baseball player. He proved good enough to land a tryout with the Los Angeles Dodgers but had to abandon his major league dreams due to an injury. Instead, he answered an ad in the since-defunct Pittsburgh Press placed by Arts International promising “Unlimited Opportunities.” He worked in their Shadyside gallery, across from the space where he and Brenda would, in 1974, open Maser Galleries.
“Everybody said you are out of your mind opening across the street from the biggest chain of galleries” in the country, Brenda tells City Paper. “About six months later, [Arts International] was gone and here we still are, 50 years later.”
In that time, the gallery has been an inspiration for customers and artists alike. Burton Morris, a Pittsburgh-born painter known for his pop culture iconography, remembers visiting as a kid and standing awe-struck in front of original works by Warhol, Nieman, Keith Haring, and others.
Photo: Courtesy of Brenda Maser
Brenda Maser (top) with Ron "Lefty" Maser (right), their daughters Kristen Maser (middle left) and Katie Belviso (middle right) with artist Burton Morris (left) in 1997
“It opened my eyes beyond the museums,” Morris tells CP.
Those experiences influenced his own work, which has gained global notoriety. He’s been the official artist for the Academy Awards and the U.S. Olympic Team. Brad Pitt, Jennifer Aniston and John Travolta are among his collectors. Fans of the sitcom Friends have likely noticed his paintings hanging on the walls of the fictional café Central Perk.
Lefty recognized Morris’ talent before all that success and organized one of his first shows. Morris now operates a gallery with his wife, Sara Firestone Morris, in Los Angeles, and looks to the Masers as a testament to a successful husband-and-wife business team.
“I can’t thank them enough for always believing in me early on,” Morris says.
He is one of Maser Galleries’ featured artists with several of his paintings for sale there.
CP Photo: Derek Maiolo
Brenda Maser at Maser Galleries
Nowadays, the Masers are taking on fewer artists and are in the process of reducing inventory. Lefty has taken a step back from the gallery in recent years due to health issues, but he plans to be there for Friday’s celebration.
Despite the changes, Brenda’s favorite part of the gallery remains meeting the customers who walk through the door.
“I just hope that we have given them as much joy and beauty as they have given us,” Brenda says, her eyes shiny with tears. “I am so blessed to be surrounded by beauty and these wonderful people for all these years.”
50th Anniversary of Maser Galleries. Fri., Sept. 27, 4-7 p.m. Maser Galleries. 5427 Walnut St., Shadyside. masergalleries.com