Mattress Factory

Barbara Luderowski purchased a derelict Stearns & Foster mattress warehouse in 1975. The museum achieved non-profit status in 1977. Over the next forty years, Luderowski would attract upcoming installation artists to fill its rooms. The Mattress Factory along with its neighbors City of Asylum and Randyland are credited with playing a role in Pittsburgh's revitalization.

• Name — Mattress Factory • Established — 1977 • Location — Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania • Type — Contemporary art museum with a focus on site-specific installation art. • Visitors — 40,000+ (2026) • Founder — Barbara Luderowski • Director — David Oresick • Parking — On site, Street, no charge • Website — mattress.org

In 1975, artist and Mattress Factory founder Barbara Luderowski purchased a former Stearns & Foster mattress warehouse at 500 Sampsonia Way in Pittsburgh's Central Northside. Originally, she used the warehouse as a space to live, work and build a community of artists and intellectuals. The community grew and in 1977—after two years of hosting art exhibits and a small food co-op—the Mattress Factory was established as a legal non-profit educational and cultural corporation. Its first exhibition of installation art opened five years later on May 8, 1982, and the museum has since grown to be an integral part of the Pittsburgh arts community, known for its artist residency program, educational programming, and unique exhibitions. In 2008 then-Curator of Exhibitions Michael Olijnyk joined Luderowski in leading the museum as co-director. Over the years the Mattress Factory has acquired more properties for various purposes, including: • 1414 Monterey Street, which became a new gallery space • Two buildings on North Taylor Street that became artist residences • 505 Jacksonia Street, which is now used as a parking lot for museum visitors, and the adjacent lot, which now houses Winifred Lutz's Garden Installation, 1993 • 516 Sampsonia Way, which opened as gallery space in Fall 2013

In September 2018, a report published in Pittsburgh's WESA detailed five employees' allegations of sexual misconduct and the mishandling of the situation by the Mattress Factory and its director, Michael Olijnyk. The complaint was filed with the National Labor Relations Board, and in early January 2019, a settlement was reached and the investigation was closed.

As of 2024, the Mattress Factory hosts 20 long-term installations. The following is a list: • Name — Artist — Year • Handrail — A Collaboration — 1993 • Danaë — James Turrell — 1983 • Pleiades — James Turrell — 1983 • Ship of Fools: Discovery of Time — Bill Woodrow — 1986 • Untitled — Jene Highstein — 1986 • Bed Sitting Rooms for an Artist in Residence — Allan Wexler — 1988 • Trespass — William Anastasi — 1991 • Catso, Red — James Turrell — 1994 • Untitled (Calisthenic Series) — William Anastasi — 1997 • Music for a Garden — Rolf Julius — 1996 • Ash — Rolf Julius — 1991 • Red — Rolf Julius — 1996 • Acupuncture — Hans Peter Kuhn — 2016 • Repetitive Vision — Yayoi Kusama — 1996 • Infinity Dots Mirrored Room — Yayoi Kusama — 1996 • It's All About ME, Not You — Greer Lankton — 1996 • Garden — Winifred Lutz — 1997 • 610-3356 — Sarah Oppenheimer — 2008 • Unbrella — Vanessa Sica & Chris Kasabach — 2009 • Ground — Dove Bradshaw — 1994

• Illustration — Repetitive Vision installation by Yayoi Kusama • Illustration — Mattress Factory building • Illustration — The Mattress Factory Annex Gallery • Illustration — Garden Installation by Winifred Lutz