Ruckus Coffee Gallery and Cafe is a small, local coffee shop located on Babcock Blvd. The cafe hosts weekly, live performances by local bands and artists. They also hold events that anyone in the community is allowed to attend. They hold Sunday afternoon tea parties, line dancing classes, psychics and so much more.
Ruckus also doubles as an art gallery. It hosts monthly art shows where any artists in the Pittsburgh area can display their amazing art pieces. Ruckus not only allows artists to show the pieces, they allow the artists to put a price tag on their work, meaning anyone who comes to visit the cafe can buy any of the art.
For the past three years, Ruckus and the Shaler Area High School art department have been working together, allowing AP art students to participate in these art shows.
Mr. Jeff Frank, an art teacher at the high school and sponsor of the National Art Honors Society, helped arrange this event. His main goal was to help students get their art out into the world. He really enjoys being able to provide this amazing opportunity for his students. Many of these students are able to sell their pieces for a fairly large amount.
“I think last year, we had a student sell a piece for $170. This year, we have a couple that have the potential to sell for much more, maybe for $300,” Frank said.
To make this event possible, Frank got in touch with Christine Raukis, a co-owner of Ruckus. Raukis owns the coffee gallery with her partner Daryl Kuczynski. Together, Raukis and Kuczynski opened the cafe in July of 2021. Frank first got into contact with Raukis three years ago after visiting the art gallery for the first time. This is now the third year that Shaler Area AP art students have been showcasing their work at Ruckus. Raukis has expressed how she really enjoys working with Shaler art students and local artists in these monthly art galleries.
“I really love showcasing local art in our cafe. It is an important element to what makes Ruckus special. ‘Coffee, Food, Music, Art’, it’s our tagline. I just love seeing my customers enjoying the art we bring to the community,” she said.
Customers at Ruckus aren’t the only ones that enjoy these galleries. Art students at Shaler Area High School really enjoy being able to participate in this event. Elizabeth Hanasik, a junior and an AP 2-D Art & Design student, shared how art classes at Shaler have really helped her become a better person and artist. Hanasik explained how taking all of the art classes she has makes her extremely happy because she feels that she is always improving. She is one of the many AP Art students who plans on submitting art to the cafe.
“I plan on trying to sell a Roberto Clemente painting I did and a charcoal drawing of some random stairs. I’m hoping to get at least $20.”
This collaboration between Shaler Area High School and Ruckus Coffee Gallery and Cafe has allowed students to showcase and sell their art. It has also allowed the local community to get a taste of what the AP art students are capable of.
