Bill Wade, Post-Gazette Charlie Humphrey Click photo for larger image. PCA plans events for anniversary The Pittsburgh Center for the Arts will celebrate its 60th anniversary on Friday with a house party from 6 to 11 p.m. Festivities include a VIP reception, an Artist of the Year Exhibition showcasing the work of Clayton Merrel, studio arts demonstrations, an artists' bazaar and a giant birthday cake at the center, at 6300 Fifth Ave. General tickets, $25, include admission to the artists' bazaar and studio arts demonstrations, a souvenir booklet, food and complimentary beer, wine and soft drinks. At 8 o'clock, Martha and the Vandellas, the Motown group best known for hit songs "Dancing in the Street," "Nowhere to Run" and "Jimmy Mack," will give a free concert on the Mellon Park stage. Free parking is available at The Ellis School, 6425 Fifth Ave., where people can board a shuttle to the center for the concert. Patrons are encouraged to bring blankets and lawn chairs for the concert. VIP tickets for $150 include a private reception from 6 to 7 p.m., a catered buffet, full bar, reserved concert seating and a meeting with Martha and the Vandellas. General and VIP tickets are available at www.pittsburgharts.org.

The board of Pittsburgh Filmmakers has voted to merge with the Pittsburgh Center for the Arts, a major step in joining two nonprofits devoted to visual arts.

Charlie Humphrey, executive director of both organizations, said 16 of Pittsburgh Filmmakers' 24 board members voted last week in favor of the merger. On Tuesday, board members at Pittsburgh Center for the Arts will vote on it. In a third and final vote Nov. 6, 55 of Pittsburgh Filmmakers' 300 members will vote. Two-thirds of the 55 must agree for the merger to occur.

As the center prepares to celebrate its 60th anniversary on Friday, its staff recalls how bleak its future appeared at this time last year.

In August 2004, the center's board laid off 13 staff members and closed the facility because it had more than $1 million in debt and only $6 in the bank. Last September, Pittsburgh Filmmakers' board agreed to lend Humphrey to the center, and he has divided his time between the two organizations since then.

Over a year, Humphrey has helped raise $450,000 from 16 foundations, government grants and individual donors. That has allowed him and his 11-member full-time staff to revive the organization, which was founded by local artists in 1945. In that year, Charles Donnell Marshall, Humphrey's great-grandfather, deeded the large mansion that houses the center to the city of Pittsburgh.

The center's debt has been whittled down to just over $600,000. By the end of October, Humphrey said, the center will pay off the $100,000 it owes to art supply companies and other vendors. The organization also hopes to repay $100,000 to local foundations.

In a presentation last week to the Regional Assets District Board, Humphrey requested $75,000 in 2006 to fund the center's operating expenses and $200,000 for Pittsburgh Filmmakers. The center received $50,000 this year and filmmakers, $75,000.

"General operating support is so hard to get. RAD money has been such a godsend. Nobody wants to take it for granted," Humphrey said.

He also hopes to find money to repair leaky roofs in the center's class building and the large white mansion on Fifth Avenue in Shadyside that is its headquarters.

Humphrey said the organization resulting from the merger, which may take effect Jan. 1, will have a new name and broad mission: "the advancement of artistic excellence in visual arts, specifically film, video, photography, digital media and fine and creative arts and crafts."

The organization also aims to provide equipment and facilities for artists, offer courses and stimulate public understanding and awareness through exhibitions, demonstrations and sales.

Though the center held classes this summer, enrollment was down, Humphrey said, because many people thought the center was closed. But things are looking up for fall classes, some of which begin this month. About 300 people have registered, twice the number in 2003.

Pittsburgh Filmmakers, which also offers courses at its office on Melwood Avenue in Oakland, must adjust its curriculum to compete with national chains that sell cameras and related film and video technology to consumers, Humphrey said.

"They sell the technology cheaply and they teach the classes."