NEW PALTZ – The Samuel Dorsky Museum of Art announces a series of programs that have been organized in conjunction with the exhibition Dear Mother Nature, Hudson Valley Artists 2012, currently on display in the Alice and Horace Chandler Gallery and North Gallery through November 4.
Interactive performances, gallery talks, workshops, and participatory ceremonies are planned from July to November to accompany the exhibition Dear Mother Nature: Hudson Valley Artists 2012. These programs have been developed by curator Linda Weintraub in conjunction with exhibiting artists to increase audience understanding of individual artworks as well as exhibition themes. Many of the artists include audience participation activities in their creative practices. As part of The Dorsky’s public programs, these artists will invite the public to interact with their pieces by developing their own messages or offerings to Mother Nature and to take home drawings. In these ways, the exhibition hopes to serve as a reminder of the current plight of Mother Nature and of the life-sustaining miracles she performs each day on Earth.
JULY
Saturday, July 21
2 pm – Free Gallery talk with Linda Weintraub, curator of Dear Mother Nature: Hudson Valley Artists 2012, and artists Portia Munson, Trina Green, and Paul Stewart
3 pm – Demonstration/Workshop: Claire Lambe invites the public to contribute to her artwork by creating origami cranes and adding wishes for Mother Nature to her artwork. All ages are welcome.
AUGUST
Saturday, August 25
2 pm – Free Gallery talk with Linda Weintraub, curator of Dear Mother Nature: Hudson Valley Artists 2012
3 pm – Ceremonial meal with artist Mary Anne Davis, “Mala Meal” – Local foods will be shared to honor Mother Nature’s bounty and inspire spiritual connections. All ages are welcome. (http://malamealproject.blogspot.com/)
SEPTEMBER
Saturday, September 15
2 pm – Free Gallery talk with Dear Mother Nature: Hudson Valley Artists 2012 curator, Linda Weintraub, and artists Christy Rupp and Elisa Pritzker
2:30 pm – Performance: Jan Harrison will perform in “Animal Tongues.” Using mask-like animal sculptures, the performance involves speaking and singing in animal tongues. Audience members can ask Mother Nature questions.
3:30 pm – Demonstration: Hudson Valley artist Barbara Bash will show examples of her journaling work and demonstrate the heaven, earth and human principles at the heart of this process in a spontaneous drawing and writing performance.
Saturday, September 22
2 pm – Free Gallery talk with Dear Mother Nature: Hudson Valley Artists 2012 curator, Linda Weintraub, and artists Angela Basile, Claudia McNulty, Meadow, Kathleen Anderson, Laura Moriarty, Ilse Schreiber-Noll, and Leslie Pelino
3 pm – Demonstration/workshop: “The Language of Natural Materials”
What is the language of sticks, bark, bones, and stones? Hudson Valley artist Daniel Mack will bring materials for people to make their own messages to Mother Nature. All ages are welcome.
Saturday, September 29
2 pm – Free Gallery talk with Linda Weintraub, curator of Dear Mother Nature: Hudson Valley Artists 2012, and artists Raquel Rabinovich and Gina Palmer
2:30 pm – Poetry Slam: Leila Goldthwaite – “Cheese Torte and Fish Tales: Poetry Theme Slam and Open Mic” – All poets and writers are invited to read and perform original poems, stories, and memories about fish as one of Mother Nature’s wondrous creations, and enjoy cheese torte, too. All ages are welcome.
3:30 pm – Workshop with artist Riva Weinstein – “Lifeline” creates a link between Mother Nature and humanity. Bring found objects. You will use them to create spontaneous and ephemeral assemblages. All ages are welcome.
OCTOBER
Saturday, October 20
2 pm – Drawing Performance: Jaanika Peerna, artist, and David Rothenberg, musician, respond to each moment’s breezes, moisture, sounds and many other offerings from Mother Nature through movement, drawing, and sound.
3 pm – Dance Performance: “Tree – a Dance: trees we see, trees we dream, trees of our lineage”
Susan Osberg – choreography and direction
Work with Dancers Company: Marika Blossfeldt, Elizabeth Castagna, Shannon Murphy and Susan Osberg
Tom Moore – photography
Steve Blamires – readings from his book, “Celtic Tree Mysteries”
ABOUT THE EXHIBITION – DEAR MOTHER NATURE, HUDSON VALLEY ARTISTS 2012
Exhibition curator Linda Weintraub explains, “Visitors to Dear Mother Nature will encounter many offerings to Mother Nature, a compelling metaphor that visualizes the critical condition of the environment today. This metaphor inspired 42 accomplished Hudson Valley artists to create artworks expressing heartfelt apologies, gratitude, prayers, sympathy, consolation, honor, and assistance to Mother Nature, who even receives a reprimand from one artist for being so willful. These diverse sentiments are conveyed in the form of paintings, drawings, photographs, performances, videos, installations, and sculptures made of ceramics, paper, wood, stone, fabric, and plastic,” said Weintraub.
Participating artists, selected from more than 200 artists who submitted their work for consideration, and the counties from which they hail include: Paul Stewart and Mary Anne Davis from Columbia County; Angela Basile, Donise English, Susan Osberg, Gina Palmer, Susan Quasha, Raquel Rabinovich, Karl Volk and Riva Weinstein from Dutchess County; Jim Holl, Claudia McNulty and Portia Munson from Greene County; Joan Bankemper, Leila Goldthwaite, Daniel Mack, Meadow and Laura Soles from Orange County; Jaanika Peerna from Putnam County; Kathleen Anderson and Polly Giragosian from Sullivan County; Barbara Bash,
María Cristina Brusca, Khem Caigan, Trina Greene, Jan Harrison, Tatana Kellner, Claire Lambe, Allison Leach, Barbara Leon, Ellen Levy, Laura Moriarty, Leslie Pelino, Elisa Pritzker, Michael X. Rose, Christy Rupp, Suzy Sureck, Diane Teramana and Sherry Williams from Ulster County; and Lisa Breznak, Leslie Miller and Ilse Schreiber-Noll from Westchester County.
ABOUT THE HUDSON VALLEY ARTISTS EXHIBITION SERIES
The Hudson Valley Artists exhibition series is open to artists from Columbia, Dutchess, Greene, Orange, Putnam, Rockland, Sullivan, Ulster and Westchester Counties. This is the fourth year that a Hudson Valley Artists Annual Purchase Award of $3,000 will be used to acquire one or more artworks from the exhibition for the Samuel Dorsky Museum of Art’s permanent collection. This Purchase Award is made possible through the Alice and Horace Chandler Art Acquisition Fund.
ABOUT THE MUSEUM
The Samuel Dorsky Museum of Art, located at SUNY New Paltz, is fast gaining wide recognition as the premier public showplace for exhibition, education, and cultural scholarship about the Hudson Valley region’s art and artists from yesterday and today. With more than 9,000 square feet of exhibition space distributed over six galleries, the Dorsky Museum is one of the largest museums within the SUNY system. Dear Mother Nature highlights The Dorsky’s focus on the art and artists of the Hudson Valley, a unique region that has served as a source of inspiration and nourished artistic creation and innovation since the time of the Hudson River School painters.
For more information about The Dorsky Museum and its programs, visit http://www.newpaltz.edu/museum, or call (845) 257-3844.
