The mission of The Industrial Arts Workshop (IAW) is to advance, inspire, and educate people through the creation of art. They do this by creating original works of sculpture, promoting artistic literacy, inspiring and supporting sculpture artists and their work, and by sharing their work through collaboration, accessible education programs, projects, and outreach.

For five summers, IAW’s pilot program, Mobile Sculpture Workshop (MSW), brought together a total of 50 Pittsburgh
youths with a shared passion for welding, creative expression, and collaboration. In 2019, they paused their summer programming to embark on a four-year multi-phase plan to build on the success of MSW and establish an artist and education center in Hazelwood. Thanks to their partners at the Hazelwood Initiative, they were able to acquire four connected buildings at 5430 Dyke Street to serve as IAW’s home.

Located in the heart of Hazelwood, IAW’s new space is easily accessible to members of the community. Because of its
location, it also has the opportunity to become a catalyst for the development of an arts district in this part of Hazelwood.
In the summer of 2021, IAW was thrilled to welcome the first cohort of apprentices to their new home for their inaugural
Summer Welding Bootcamp. Students had the opportunity to learn from seasoned teaching artists, professional craftsmen,
and MSW alumni about the artist process, safety standards, and welding. In addition, the apprentices enjoyed field trips to
Pittsburgh art museums and tours of the city to learn about local pieces of public artwork.

Now in its second summer, IAW’s Summer Welding Bootcamp students are working on a large scale sculpture in collaboration with the KRUNK Movement and Ambassadors of Social Justice – two youth programs hosted by the Center of Life in Hazelwood.