The Pittsburgh Nude Project "We wanted to show another side of this town, that there is beauty in the people, and the art in the artists," says Brent Isaac, who along with Kim Rullo collaborated on The Pittsburgh Nude Project. Click photo for larger image.

One in an occasional series of features written by students in Debbi Gardiner's newspaper, magazine and financial writing classes at Chatham College.

Artists Kim Rullo and Brent Isaac made it their mission to search for an answer to the question: "Is identity really who we are or is it merely a means to an end?" The result of their collaboration is The Pittsburgh Nude Project, an art exhibit featuring photographs, essays and film.

"I want people to leave thinking of identity and all the questions that entails for them," Ms. Rullo said of the project, which also aims to "capture the essence" of the people who reside in the city. The photographs will be on display through Art From Chaos this summer at a gallery in the SouthSide Works.

Ms. Rullo and Mr. Isaac, who met at Point Park College, now Point Park University, where they both studied art, chose Pittsburgh for their project because they would like to shake up the city's image.

"Most people think of this region as nothing more than hillbillies watching sports, drinking beer and making smoky steel," Mr. Isaac said. "The only photography that seems to get out is the same views from Mt. Washington. We wanted to show another side of this town, that there is beauty in the people, and the art in the artists."

Initially, Ms. Rullo and Mr. Isaac weren't certain of direction. The freelance graphic designers, conceptual artists and photographers -- Mr. Isaac also does filmmaking and has captured images of jazz musician (and "Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood'' handyman) Joe Negri and worked in productions for filmmaker Tony Buba -- toyed with photographing people as if they were shapes and not actual bodies.

They asked two college friends to participate in the project to see if it would actually work, and it did. "We started thinking about the idea of identity and if identity was really who we were as people or just another layer, another agenda, a means to an end, a persona trait. We thought nudity was only a surface layer to true nudity of self," Ms. Rullo said.

Pittsburgh Nude Project Models were found through ads and by word of mouth. Click photo for larger image.

To find models, they placed ads in the local alternative papers, The City Paper and Pulp; employed word of mouth; asked friends; and sought out unique and interesting people.

"We started interviewing all of our models with probing questions on their identity dealing with religion, God, what they wanted to be when they grew up, why they did not become what they set out to be as a child, what they though identity meant to them, etc.," said Ms. Rullo, who also was one of the models.

They also asked models and writers to take a topic about identity, write and expand upon it. Then they found illustrators to interpret identity, and took all of the material gathered from the project and created a film.

"It was an amazing, intense experience. We learned a lot about ourselves and each other," Ms. Rullo said, adding she and Mr. Isaac were lucky to have the support of friends and family during the project. "I think we had almost everyone we know either participate, promote, frame photos, write or help with the exhibition in some way. We have quite the cheering section."

The Pittsburgh Nude Project was personally financed, and the pair didn't break even financially. "But it was so worth it. It was nice to get our foot in the door of the art community," Ms. Rullo said.

When the pair completed the project and unveiled it before the public last June, they admitted to being nervous, anxious, frightened, stressed -- and accomplished. "We weren't sure of what we'd get, but we expected conservative reactions,'' Mr. Isaac said.

Pittsburgh Nude Project Click photo for larger image.

"The show was at the Blue Ruin Gallery (on the South Side), which typically shows nudes or erotic art,'' he said. "We're not erotica by any stretch, but they seemed to 'get us.' So the showing was more targeted and marketed to their audience, and of course our personal friends ... the response was fantastic, very positive. We looked at it as a stepping stone towards a larger exhibition and see what happens."

Ms. Rullo and Mr. Isaac have made the photos available for purchase via their Web site, www.brentisaac.com, and the Blue Ruin Gallery's Web site at www.blueruingallery.com. They sold at least 10 photographs at the exhibit last June. Prices range from $45 for a 5x7 photograph to $200 for larger images. Opening a store on www.cafepress.com is next on their agenda.

As with most new businesses, the majority of their profits go back into the project. "We don't make much money off of our art as of right now. We do try to use what we can for upgrading equipment. But mostly, right now, I am definitely a starving artist," Ms. Rullo said.