Eric Lidji is more than the cartoonist who contribute the often poignantly deadpan "Public Notices" to City Paper each week. He's also an archival consultant in the Heinz History Center's Detre Library & Archives for the Rauh Jewish Archives and an arts-and-culture writer for Pittsburgh Magazine.

AndLidji is writing a book about "Clarion Call" — a sculpture by H. Douglas Pickering that was completed in 1985 and then stolen before it could be permanently installed. The work had taken Pickering, a Carnegie Mellon University art professor, nine years to complete. At 10 feet tall and weighing 800 pounds, it was meant as a symbol of hope for a city ravaged by the collapse of its heavy industry. (It's pictured here at Gateway Center.)

On Saturday at the Center Lidji gives a talk titled "'Clarion Call': The Life & Death of a Work of Art." The lecture is "an exploration of how communities value, present, and preserve public art. ... The story of Clarion Call offers a glimpse into the life and work of an underappreciated Pittsburgh artist and provides insight into the history and controversies of public art in Pittsburgh during the 20th century."

The talk, part of the museum's Saturday Speaker Series, is free with museum admission and runs from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. (Come early for coffee and danish.)

Admission to the museum is $6-15. RSVP for the talk to Sandra Baker at [email protected] or 412-454-6412.