CITY OF BONES
#13 Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh, Hazelwood
about City of Bones
City of Bones | Gem of the Confluence is a mixtape that explores August Wilson’s artistic life and theatrical work through the rich history of Black music in Pittsburgh, collaging archival audio and play dialogue with the sounds of artists such as Mary Lou Williams, Ahmad Jamal, and more.
The mixtape and installation are based on August Wilson’s play Gem of the Ocean, set in Pittsburgh circa 1904. In the play, the elder Aunt Ester invites a troubled Citizen Barlow to a meeting with his ancestors in the mythological City of Bones.
Following Aunt Ester’s instructions to Citizen Barlow, the mixtape is installed at various sites across the city relevant to this history.
track description:
“borges blues”
After dropping out of school at 15-years-old, August Wilson spent his days in the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh to hide this fact from his mother. He read all of the books that he could get his hands on, especially those from the “Negro Section” of the library, where the books of Black authors were.
Wilson named his “Four B’s” of greatest influences on his work, which included the Argentinian author Jorge Luis Borges, whose voice is featured on this track. In 1987, Wilson received an honorary diploma from the Carnegie Library.