Press Release The Andy Warhol Museum Announces Joint Marketing Campaign with Fallingwater, The Mattress Factory, and Kentucky Knob

The Andy Warhol Museum, Fallingwater, the Mattress Factory Art Museum, and Kentuck Knob launch a Pittsburgh-based marketing campaign via a new website – “Pittsburgh Art and Architecture Tour” (www.pghtrip.org). The goal of the collaboration between the four institutions is to develop a creative co-branded marketing strategy that will encourage visitors, especially those from outside the region, to make a coordinated weekend trip to Pittsburgh to experience these unique cultural destinations.

The Warhol approached Fallingwater, Kentuck Knob and the Mattress Factory because, like The Warhol, they are all institutions unique to the Pittsburgh area. Although each organization is widely known, visitors often do not realize that they are in such close proximity to one another. The campaign strives to persuade cultural tourists that a visit to the four organizations makes a perfect weekend getaway, particularly for visitors from cities such as New York, Toronto, Chicago and Washington, DC.

In addition to links to the four partner institutions, the website, www.pghtrip.org, includes itineraries for a variety of transportation options including travel via car, plane, or public transit. Also included on these suggested itineraries are staff picks for local dining and accommodations.

The Warhol’s Director Eric Shiner states, “We are very excited about this collaborative effort to increase cultural tourism to the Pittsburgh region. America’s ‘Most Liveable City’ is home to truly top-tier cultural institutions and a trip here to The Warhol and our partner organizations is a must for any culture vulture.”

The four organizations came together as part of a planning grant provided by the Pittsburgh-based Benter Foundation. The Foundation supports the leaders, organizations and ideas that help communities and individuals thrive with a special emphasis on helping to make Pittsburgh even more vibrant. Bill Benter, president of The Benter Foundation explains, “Working together, these four institutions can magnify their marketing power and attract significant visitorship. Visitors will enjoy Pittsburgh’s many great amenities, while the region gains valuable tourism revenues and an enhanced reputation as a destination.”

“The best outcome of this collaboration would be a visitor feeling that they were unable to see all that Pittsburgh has to offer,” said Michael Olijnyk, Mattress Factory Co-Director.

“Western Pennsylvania is a cultural destination and deserves to have that distinction,” said Lynda Waggoner, director of Fallingwater and vice president of the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy. “A tour of the region will illuminate something we have long known to be true: Great artistic minds are drawn to this place.”

For more information about the campaign, or to plan your next trip to Pittsburgh, visit www.pghtrip.org.