The Last Billboard
The Last Billboard is a public art billboard in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The art piece consists of a 12-feet-by-36-feet steel frame billboard on which letters can be arranged. Each month, artists are solicited to place a message on the billboard. It is curated by Jon Rubin. The billboard is located at the intersection of Highland Avenue and Baum Boulevard in the East Liberty neighborhood, above what was originally the building for, a restaurant that was also conceptualized by Jon Rubin.
Schedule of guest artists
2013
2014
2015
| Months | Artist | Message |
| January - March | Kim Beck | today only / last chance! final day! / nothing held back / closing forever! |
| April | Sarah Keeling | ford & daughter / used tires / 704-370-3793 |
| May | Pablo Helguera | anulala a la luna |
| June | Milena Bonilla | the whole town's sleeping |
| July | Paul Ramirez Jonas | a i a / sky you sea / cloud crowd brook / hilltop company rivulet / highpoint multitude tributary |
| August | Taylor Shields | spry texts keep ducking up / ducking / duck / duck / nevermind |
| October | Jonn Herschend | close your eyes / and imagine that / i'm dancing so crazy fast |
2016
| Months | Artist | Message |
| February | Jim Christensen | anything / but / this |
| April | Lenka Clayton | tragically, / the world's oldest person / keeps dying. |
| June | John Riegert | just saw a hipster with / big headphones on top of / a knit cap, wearing a coat / i had worn for 20 years / and gave to goodwill. |
| July | David Horvitz | rachel carson / is my hero |
| October | Micah Lexier | a. f. k. / b. g. / c. h. / d. i. / e. j. |
| August | Neil Farber and Michael Dumontier | you don't have to / open every door. / a door labelled hell, / for instance. |
2017
| Months | Artist | Message |
| March | Jon Rubin | a man whose daily work / is rewriting history / tries to rebel / by falling in love |
| May | Eric Gottesman | do not react to this. |
| June | Joseph Del Pesco | you don't need a weatherman to tell which way the wind blows |
| July | Tamara Shopsin | a tow truck / pulling / an ambulance |
| September | Brett Yasko | . /. /.. /. /.. /. /. /. |
| November | Laure Prouvost | ideally everything / will turn quiet / now |
2018
| Months | Artist | Message |
| March | Alisha Wormsley | there / are / black people / in the / future |
Controversy
In March 2018, The Last Billboard's landlord, We Do Property, in response to complaints from community members who felt the sign was racist, removed Alisha Wormsley's text from the billboard. Jon Rubin, the billboard's founder and creator, responded in a statement in response to the removal:A public panel discussion about the text and its removal is expected to be hosted by the Kelly Strayhorn Theater in April or May 2018.