On-Hudson.com

Bear Mountain Cruise Nights Classic Car Shows 6pm-9pm Wednesday's thru September

http://www.popyourhood.com/RodBendersHome.html

Bear Mountain Cruise Night

will be from 6pm-9pm Wednesday's thru September.

Starting May 6, 2009

Click here for the admission/parking rules from the State Park

Call Bryan's cell at 914-772-6683

for more info.

Contact Rod Benders Car Club

Just a few reminders for the Bear Mountain Cruise Night.

No burnouts or operating of car sound systems.

We do not allow flyers to be placed in vehicles at the cruise.

They may be passed out by hand or be placed

in our flyer rack at the registration table.

See Bryan or Craig and they will get your event announced

by the DJ that night and up until your event.

Do not see DJ directly.

Any car with flyers placed inside will please bring flyers to Bryan.

Nothing spoils an interior like flyers do.

Except maybe rain.

Rod Benders assume no responsibility for damages or lost items.

Cruise Night Car Show @ Bear Mountain Wednesday Nights May 6 -September 9 2009 6-9:PM

Cruise on over   Palisades Interstate Park Commission CRUISE NIGHT SPONSORED BY:  THE ROD BENDERS CAR CLUB OF NEW YORK AT  BEAR MOUNTAIN STATE PARK WEDNESDAY NIGHTS MAY 6, 2008 through September 9, 2009* 6:00PM TO 9:00PM Weather Permitting $3.00 ENTRANCE FEE PER VEHICLE* September 9th is the Donation Show.**  A $10/vehicle charge is collected and donated to local charities FEATURING: 50/50 RAFFLE PRIZES & GIVEAWAYS MUSIC VENDORS  DELICIOUS FOOD  FUN FOR THE ENTIRE FAMILY COME & ENJOY! OFFICIAL WEB SITE (CANCELLATIONS CAN BE FOUND HERE): http://www.popyourhood.com/  *All Cars Shows are scheduled to take place on the Bear Mountain playfield. In the event the field is too wet for the first two shows, the Car Show will be held in Parking 2 and will be FREE of CHARGE. Please call ahead to confirm. **Please note that the donation show will be the last show for this year. FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CALL (914) 772-6683 Bear Mountain State Park can be reached via Exit 19 of the Palisades Interstate Parkway or from Route 9W. For more information or special access needs, contact the Bear Mountain Office at 845-786-2701.  The Palisades Parks Conservancy, Inc., (dba Friends of the Palisades, Inc.), the charitable partner of the Palisades Interstate Park Commission is a free-standing federally registered non-profit corporation exempt under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Donations may be made over our secure Web site atpalisades.exhibit-e.com/donate/ or by mailing to Palisades Parks Conservancy, Bear Mountain State Park, Administration Building, Bear Mountain, NY 10911. For more information, please call us at 845-786-2701 or send email to admin@palisadesparksconservancy.org. XXX

Summer 2009 Stay-Cation NYC

http://www.nydailynews.com/lifestyle/travel/2009/04/30/2009-04-30_stay_in_new_york_and_be_a_tourist_in_your_hometown_this_summer.html

Stay in New York and be a tourist in your hometown this summer: hotels, dining, music, sports & more

JACOB E. OSTERHOUT

Daily News

Wynton Marsalis sets the tone for Jazz at Lincoln Center, which is offering a buy one ticket, get one fre

With spending cash in shorter supply thanGov. Patersonsupporters, many New Yorkers will vacation close to home as the weather heats up.

And there’s no better time than now to be a tourist in your own town. The city’s taking full advantage of the staycation mentality — there are great deals on local attractions from hotels to nightlife and museums.(For more info, visitwww.NYCGo.com/realdeal.)

HOTELS

THE W NEW YORKin midtown (541 Lexington Ave.) was recently renovated, and to celebrate they’re offering great deals Thursday to Sunday on rooms from May though July. Special rates with a free upgrade to a “Wonderful Room” range from $179-$199 a night.www.travelzoo.com, 1-877-822-0000.

Steeped in historic significance,THEALGONQUIN HOTEL(59 W. 44th St.) is a convenient and belovedNew York Citylandmark. The hotel is now offering 20% off its best available room rates for Sunday stays. Plus, when you buy one drink at either of the two bars at the hotel, you get the second drink for half price.www.algonquinhotel.com, (212) 840-6800.

THE AFFINIA GARDENS(215 E. 64th St.), a posh upper East Side hotel, normally charges $359 a night for a spacious junior suite, but if you book a room by May 8 for a stay anytime between May 24 and July 11, rates fall to $199 a night.www.affinia.com, (212) 355-1230.

Treat yourself to first-class comfort in a setting high above the hustle and bustle of midtown. Starting in May, the luxuriousPARK CENTRAL NEW YORK HOTEL(870 Seventh Ave.) is offering summer special rates ranging from $159 to $179 a night.www.parkcentralny.com, (212) 247-8000.

Escape the midtown madness by heading south to theSOHOTEL(341 Broome St., at the Bowery), the oldest hotel in New York City. Deluxe rooms are $189 a night, but if you’re planning to stay a while, the Sohotel throws in a great deal: Stay three nights from May 3 to July 30 and get half off one night. Stay four nights during the same period and get one night free!www.thesohotel.com, (212) 226-1482.

NIGHTLIFE

DUMBO’sST. ANN’S WAREHOUSE(38 Water St., Brooklyn) provides a little bit of everything in what many consider the coolest neighborhood in the city. From avant-garde theatrical performances to hard-core rock ’n’ roll shows, this venue has it all. Now, when you buy one ticket, you get the second for half off.www.StAnnsWarehouse.org, (718) 254-8779.

With good food and world-class comedians,COMIX(53 W. 14th St.) is a great place to grab a bite to eat and laugh the night away. The club offers cutting-edge alternative comedy, improv and sketch comedy as well as music and variety programming. Until the end of June, when you buy one ticket, you get the second for half price.www.ComixNY.com, (212) 524-2500.

DINING

Any restaurant without a sign counts on food and atmosphere to do all the talking. So it is with West Village hot spotBOBO(181 W. 10th St.), where everything on the new den menu is $20 or less.www.BoboNYC.com, (212) 488-2626.

You deserve to treat yourself to a little excess when you’re on vacation. Thanks to the economy, you can now get fat while your wallet stays fat. Swanky Italian hot spotDEL POSTO(85 10th Ave.) has lowered its nine-course grand tasting menu from $175 to $125 and reduced the 20-course extravaganza from $250 to $175.www.DelPosto.com, (212) 497-8090.

Where to find the best hamburger in New York City is hotly contested, but most connoisseurs putPETER LUGER(178 Broadway, inBrooklyn) at the top of the list. While steak dinners can get pricey at this standby, the lunchtime special (served until 3 p.m.) is one of the best deals in town. On your day off from work, chow down on a 10-ounce burger, made from prime chuck roll and the trimmings from the restaurant’s famous porterhouse, for only $9.www.PeterLuger.com, (718) 387-7400.

RELAXATION

Voted Best of New York by Vogue, Allure and New York magazines, theOASIS DAY SPA(1 Park Ave. and 150 E. 34th St.) offers a variety of packages: Buy one 60- or 90-minute service and get one service of equal or lesser value for 50% off.www.oasisdayspanyc.com, (212) 254-7722.

OUTDOORS

Explore New York City and get some exercise at the same time.CENTRAL PARK BICYCLE TOURS(203 W. 58th St.) rents bikes and also offers a Movie Scenes Tour, a Brooklyn Tour, an Art and Architecture Family Tour and even a “Sex and the City” Tour. When you buy one tour or rental, you’ll get the second half off. What’s more, receive a 10% discount when you make your reservation online.www.centralparkbiketour.com, (212) 541-8759.

With more than a million plants on 250 acres in theBronx, theNEW YORK BOTANICAL GARDEN(Bronx RiverParkway at Fordham Road) is a plant lover’s fantasy. Until June 30, this urban Eden is offering a half-price ticket with the purchase of one full-price ticket.www.nybg.org, (718) 817-8700.

PERFORMANCES

Catch a performance ofNEW YORK CITY BALLETat theDavid H. KochTheater (20Lincoln CenterPlaza), and you’ll understand why the dance company is known as an incubator of American talent. Buy one ticket and get the second one half off.www.nycballet.com, (212) 870-5570.

Go see the Tony Award-winning musical“CHICAGO”at the Ambassador Theatre for the quintessential Broadway experience. Buy one ticket and you get the second one half off.www.broadwayoffers.com, promo code NYCES09; (212) 239-6200.

Check out amateur night at theAPOLLO THEATERinHarlem(253 W. 125th St.) and discover New York’s up-andcoming performers. Who knows? Maybe you’ll discover the nextElla FitzgeraldorMichael Jackson, both of whose careers were born at the legendary venue. When you buy one ticket, you get your second half off.www.ApolloTheater.org, (212) 531-5300.

If you have never been to seeJAZZ AT LINCOLN CENTER(33 W. 60th St.) in its beautiful home high atopColumbus Circle, now is the time. Trumpet greatWynton Marsalisis the artistic director, so you know the music is world-class. Pick any performance, buy a ticket and get the second ticket half off.www.jalc.org.  

MUSEUMS

What a great summer for museum lovers and art fans!THE WHITNEY, THEMUSEUM OF MODERN ART, THEBROOKLYN MUSEUM, THEMETROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ARTAND THESOLOMON R. GUGGENHEIM MUSEUM,as well as close to a dozen lesser-known but equally exciting venues, are offering “buy one ticket, get the second for half off” deals through the end of June.www.nycgo.com. 

Want to go on vacation with the kids? Take the ferry (it’s free!) to theSTATEN ISLAND CHILDREN’S MUSEUM(1000 Richmond Terrace). The whole family will enjoy supersize board games, a firsthand look at a bug’s life and replicas of various ecosystems. Buy one admission ticket and get the second for half off.www.statenislandkids.org, (718) 273-2060.

SPORTS

Even if you’re not a baseball fanatic, you’ll love the atmosphere at aBROOKLYN CYCLONESgame. Head out toConey Islandand catch the best thing to hit the boardwalk since Nathan’s. Buy one ticket to see the Mets’ minor league team play atKeySpan Park(1904 Surf Ave.) and get the second one half off.www.BrooklynCyclones.com, (718) 449-8497.

With four trips to theWNBAfinals, theNEW YORK LIBERTYis one of the proudest franchises in the league. Plus, the Liberty plays inMadison Square Garden, widely regarded (and marketed) as the World’s Most Famous Arena. Catch a Liberty game at the Garden, and when you buy one ticket at $34.50, $39.50 or $64.50, get the second one half off.www.nyliberty.com, (212) 564-WNBA.

Read more: "Stay in New York and be a tourist in your hometown this summer: hotels, dining, music, sports & more" -http://www.nydailynews.com/lifestyle/travel/2009/04/30/2009-04-30_stay_in_new_york_and_be_a_tourist_in_your_hometown_this_summer.html?page=2#ixzz0EF6kOVJY&A

Great Hudson River Revival June 20 & 21 10AM-Dusk @ Croton Point Park

http://www.clearwater.org/festival/

Contemporary blues star Susan Tedeschi, renowned Sixties-era troubadour Arlo Guthrie, and “newgrass” sensations Old Crow Medicine Show are among the headliners for Clearwater’s 2009 Great Hudson River Revival, which will take place on Saturday and Sunday, June 20 and 21 at Croton Point Park in Croton-on-Hudson, NY. The Clearwater Festival will be celebrating a number of auspicious occasions this year, and new festival director Jon Dindas is trimming the sails with a lineup that mixes longtime folk-centric Clearwater favorites like Richie Havens, Jay Ungar and Molly Mason, Rik Palieri, Linda Richards and Tao Rodriguez-Seeger with a bevy of top acts and musical artists who will be making their first appearance at the festival—Alejandro Escovedo, A.C. Newman, Allison Moorer, MacTalla Mór, Elvis Perkins in Dearland, Cornmeal, Dr. Dog and more. The music will run all day, from 10am to Dusk. Get your tickets now—early birds save before May 20.

Hudson River Trilogy Thru June 28th 2009 @ THE KATONAH MUSEUM

http://www.katonahmuseum.org/

Hudson River Trilogy: Nancy Cohen

In the Project Gallery
March 29 - June 28, 2009In celebration of the 400th anniversary of Henry Hudson’s historic exploration of the waterway that bears his name, the KMA will present three solo exhibitions during the year to showcase contemporary artwork inspired by the Hudson River. All three artists live along the river’s banks and draw inspiration from its beauty, its ecology, and its rich maritime history.

Nancy Cohen is the first artist featured in the series. Using handmade colored paper, Cohen transforms the Project Gallery into a metaphorical waterway. Perspectives on Salinity: River from Within articulates the confluence where fresh water from the Adirondacks meets salt water from the Atlantic. The result is a dramatic installation that surrounds the viewer with waves of shifting color and subtle movement.

 

WoodStock 2009 @ Prospect Park ?

http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/brooklyn/2009/04/05/2009-04-05_prospect_park_may_host_woodstocks_40th_a.html

Prospect Park may host Woodstock's 40th anniversary

Rosier/News

The promoter of the original Woodstock wants to bring a 40th anniversary concert to Prospect Park.

Handout/©Elliott Landy, Landyvision, Inc

Woodstock in 1969.

The summer of Love could be coming to Brooklyn if a promoter from the original Woodstock music festival has his way, the Daily News has learned.

Michael Lang, who helped put on the famous upstate 1969 festival, is hoping to stage a massive Woodstock 40th anniversary concert in Prospect Park's Long Meadow this summer -- if he can find enough sponsors.

"It's big, it's convenient. There's public transportation - and Brooklyn's cool," said Lang, 64. "I'd love to do it. But it's been a very tough year."

Parks Commissioner Adrian Benepe confirmed the city is in talks with Lang about the event.

"New York City has a wonderful legacy of great free concerts," said Benepe, adding Prospect Park would be a great spot for such a concert.

"It's a park we have been pointing concert promoters to," said Benepe. "There's no space anywhere in Central Park as large as the the Long Meadow in Prospect Park."

Lang, who grew up in Bensonhurst, Brooklyn, said he knows the clock is ticking and that to make the free daylong show work, he has to find the necessary $8 million to $10 million to pay for it by the end of the month.

If the money comes through, Lang is hoping to attract up to 150,000 people and feature a mix of Woodstock legends like Crosby, Stills and Nash, and Neil Young, as well as newer bands that fit the vibe, like Dave Matthews and Phish.

That would be a big change from the 30th anniversary concert held upstate in 1999, which featured groups like Metallica and Megadeth, and was shut down amid riots and widespread violence.

"We would like to harken back to something a lot more sentimental," said Lang. "'99 was more of an MTV event. The music was much too angry for me."

Lang said he hasn't met with the NYPD about security for such a massive undertaking, but wasn't worried.

"New York cops are pretty good at this," he said. "I'm sure they would be able to handle it."

Lang also looked at Coney Island for the concert, but decided the beach was too narrow for such a large crowd.

He's also considering Flushing Meadows in Queens but has ruled out Central Park because he was told he could only have about 50,000 on the Great Lawn there.

There is already one problem with Prospect Park, however.

Because Lang has waited so long, the actual Woodstock anniversary date, Aug. 15, has been taken.

Lang said it would be worth it to him to have the show on another weekend if he could still have the show in Prospect Park.

"It's still our first choice," he said.

ehays@nydailynews.com

National Philharmonic Of Russia April 17th @ Performing Arts Center

	artscenter.org
	THE PERFORMING ARTS CENTER Purchase College National Philharmonic of Russia Friday, April 17 8 pm Vladimir Spivakov, Artistic Director and Principal Conductor featuring Mikhail Simonyan, violin Founded in 2003 by an initiative of President Vladimir Putin and the Ministry of Culture, this orchestra has quickly become a proud cultural symbol of the new Russia. Artistic Director and Principal Conductor Vladimir Spivakov builds upon the legacy of Russia's great symphonic traditions, while also turning his attention to rarely performed works, 20th-century pieces and compositions commissioned specifically for the orchestra. PROKOFIEV Lieutenant Kije Suite, op. 60 TCHAIKOVSKY Violin Concerto in D major, op. 35 Intermission STRAVINSKY Divertimento from The Fairy's Kiss TCHAIKOVSKY Suite from The Sleeping Beauty, op. 66  Tickets*: $42.50/$52.50/$62.50/$72.50 *Ticket price includes parking fee. To order your tickets, call 914.251.6200 or visit www.artscenter.org.

Bear Mountain State Park TrailSide Summer Music Series WeekEnds April - August 2009

Design by Artists in the Parks member Erik Thorne

Palisades Interstate Park Commission

Bear Mountain State Park's 
Trailside Museums & Zoo

Summer Music Concert Series!
Weekends April - August


Join us in the renovated Trailside Amphitheater for five music concerts throughout the summer of 2009. The Trailside Summer Music Concerts Series, will provide a fun and free performing arts experience to our community, celebrate the diversity of our region, and introduce the public to the Trailside Amphitheater, an exciting new space for environmental education and special events.

Concert Series Schedule:

Saturday, April 25th
The State Workers 
Original environment themed art-rock 
Presented as part of the Trailside Earth Day Celebration
Rain date: April 26th

Sunday, May 24th 
Sruli and Lisa
Exuberant Klezmir performance
Rain date: May 31st

Saturday, June 20th
Blue Plate Special
Traditional Appalachian Bluegrass
Presented as part of the Trailside Solstice Celebration
Rain Date: June 21st

Saturday, July 4th
3D Ritmo de Vida
Latin Tropical Groove
¡Presentado en Español!
Rain date: July 5th

Saturday, August 1st
Guillermo Saar
Ecuadorian folk songs and original compositions
¡Presentado en Español!
Presented as part of the Trailside Bird Festival
Rain Date: August 2nd

All concerts are FREE and open to the general public.
Parking at Bear Mountain State Park is $7/car 
There is a suggested donation of $1/visitor to Trailside Zoo

The Traiside Summer Music Concert Series is made possible by funding from the Decentralization Program of the New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA), administered through the Arts in Orange program. 

For more information, call Erica Nagel, Concert Series Coordinator at 845-786-2701 ext. 265

What Organizers are saying about this Concert Series: 

"The variety of music presented in this series reflects and celebrates the diversity of visitors to the zoo. We also hope the music series will show our patrons that the arts can be an exciting element of learning about conservation, wildlife, history, and our environment." ~ Erica Nagel, Concert Series Coordinator 

"After all the hard work of our staff and volunteers to renovate this space last year, we want to make sure the public knows about it, and sees it as an important part of the zoo's educational offerings. We hope that offering live music of this caliber will draw people into the amphitheater, and get them used to thinking of the space as a destination for special programs during their future visits." ~ Ed McGowan, Director of Trailside Museums and Zoo

Trailside Museums and Zoo is part of the Palisades Interstate Park Commission, which administers 29 parks, parkways, and historic sites for the Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation in New York as well as the Palisades Interstate Park and parkway in New Jersey. For more information about New York State parks and historic sites, please visit www.nysparks.com, for information about the New Jersey section of the PIPC please visit www.njpalisades.org, and for more information about the Palisades Parks Conservancy and the Palisades Interstate Park parks and historic sites, please visit www.palisadesparksconservancy.org.

The Palisades Parks Conservancy, Inc., (dba Friends of the Palisades, Inc.), the charitable partner of the Palisades Interstate Park Commission is a free-standing federally registered non-profit corporation exempt under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Donations may be made over our secure Web site atpalisades.exhibit-e.com/donate/ or by mailing to Palisades Parks Conservancy, Bear Mountain State Park, Administration Building, Bear Mountain, NY 10911. For more information, please call us at 845-786-2701 or send email to admin@palisadesparksconservancy.org.

Rolling Thunder Announces Historic Veterans Events June 4-7 2009

http://www.prweb.com/releases/2009/04/prweb2316214.htm

Sacrifice, Honor, Celebration Hallmarks of Rolling Thunder® Inc., Chapter 3, New York's Hosted Historic June 4-7, 2009 Veterans Event

10th Annual "Salute to Veterans Ride," American Veterans Traveling Tribute (AVTT) and 65th Anniversary WWII D-Day highlights of Hudson Valley Veterans Event!

Newburgh, NY (PRWEB) April 13, 2009 - The members and supporters of Rolling Thunder® Inc., Chapter 3, New York (www.rtnych3.com) invite you to come and celebrate the sacrifice and honor of our military veterans and their families at the American Veterans Traveling Tribute (http://www.avtt.org/Wall_5_29_07.html). To reflect on how much our military veterans have given to and preserved for us, and to shake the hands of all veterans they meet and thank them for their service - you can bet that the members of Rolling Thunder will!

"This year, the Hudson Valley celebrates 400 years since Henry Hudson's Half Moon first sailed the river's waters. It's been an intimate witness to both the American and Industrial Revolutions, the growth of farming and commercial interests, and every development in ground, water and air transportation that exists. It was also, in many ways, home to numerous military bases and personnel over the last two centuries. With so much in the way of military and VA hospital cutbacks in recent decades, and with the passing of so many military veterans from WWII and Vietnam, the presence and importance of military veterans in the Hudson Valley has diminished significantly." Said Dave Hansen President, Rolling Thunder® Inc., Chapter 3, New York. "Recognizing this, the veterans-support organization Rolling Thunder® Inc., Chapter 3 NY, invited one of our country's numerous 'Traveling Walls' (replicas of the Vietnam Memorial Wall in Washington, DC) to the area to help recognize, remember and honor those military veterans who reside in the Valley. The 'Traveling Wall' is actually just the centerpiece of a display - the "American Veterans Traveling Tribute" - that's a collection of memorials dedicated to the veterans of all of our country's conflicts."

This 'Tribute' will be in our area from June 4th thru the 7th, at the former Stewart Air Force Base, now known as Stewart International Airport, in New Windsor, New York.

The hours the 'Tribute' will be open, and free to the public, are 3pm to 10pm on Thursday, June 4th (the event's opening ceremony will be at 3pm), and from 8am to 10pm each day Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Saturday, June 6th, is the 65th anniversary of WWII's D-Day, and it will be recognized as such during that day's ceremonies.

Rolling Thunder® Inc., Chapter 3, New York's 10th Annual "Salute to Veterans Ride" will take place Sunday, June 7th, at the 2nd Aviation hangar on 1st St. Registration: 8am-10am, leave 10:30am; $20 per rider, $10 per passenger; ride down thru West Point USMA, short memorial service in Highland Falls, returns to food, drink, music, speakers, military vehicle/aircraft display, 'Ride Of Honor' past the Traveling Wall at 3pm.

The entire 'Traveling Tribute' exhibition will be held the three days prior to, and during, our "Salute To Veterans Ride & Expo", Sunday, June 7th. Last year's 'Ride and Expo' attracted more than 600 motorcyclists and many visitors, with more expected in 2009.

"Rolling Thunder® Inc., Chapter 3, New York has always been faithful to our veterans and their families, "said Goldstar Parent Lawrence Tremblay, Sr., "It is our turn to support them. I will have The Marine Corps Tribute Bike (http://www.marinecorpstributebike.com/) and The Simon Kirke Signature Series, Gold Star Parents Edition, United States--United Kingdom Veterans Tribute Bike with Matching Southern Fried Guitar (http://americanveteransaidfund.com/donationpx.shtml) on site fulfilling their tribute missions and in support of the men and women of Rolling Thunder® Inc., Chapter 3, New York that I hold the greatest respect and love for."

You can be a hero! We are looking to cover a significant portion of the expenses of the 'Traveling Tribute' exhibition by creating an advertising/daily schedule journal, that will be given to every visitor to the event. This journal will be 4-1/4" x 5-1/2" in size (1/2 of normal office printer paper), and one page will be divided into as many as eight available ad spaces, suitable for business-card copy. Full-page ads will be priced at $500, half-pages at $250, quarter pages at $125, and a business-card-copy area will go for $75. In addition to these ads, we will have an unlimited number of pages of 'supporter/booster' entries, limited to two lines of text each, for $25. Ad purchasers contributing more than $500 will be noted as 'major sponsors', and recognized as such with their name on a special panel at the event. To place an ad, please contact us at the above address, or Rolling Thunder® Inc., Chapter 3, New York's member Paul Tompkins at E-mail: eagle12590 (at) yahoo (dot) com or Telephone: (845) 297-5073.

For complete, most up-to-date information, and media inquiries contact Howie Graham at telephone (845) 633-0992, E-mail: hgraham (at) hvc (dot) rr (dot) com, or Rolling Thunder® Inc., Chapter 3, New York's Official Website: www.rtnych3.com

Fleming Museum Opens a Quadricentennial Exhibition "A Beckoning Country "

http://www.artdaily.org/index.asp?int_sec=2&int_new=30172

Robert Hull Fleming Museum to Open Quadricentennial Exhibition

Theodore Hopkins (American, 1828-1889), Burlington Bay, c. 1850. Oil on Panel. Gift of Walter Cerf, 1981.16.

BURLINGTON, VT.- In celebration of the quadricentennial anniversary of French explorer and cartographer Samuel de Champlain's travels to the lake that bears his name, the Fleming Museum has organized a new large-scale exhibition, A Beckoning Country: Art and Objects from the Lake Champlain Valley. For thousands of years, Lake Champlain has drawn people to its shores and to the land it nourishes. A Beckoning Country examines the features of the Champlain Valley landscape through the objects and art created from and inspired by them.  The title of the exhibition, "A Beckoning Country," derives from a 1960s promotional campaign by the state of Vermont encouraging tourism. In this exhibition, the Museum examines some of the elements of the Lake Champlain landscape that have beckoned people to its shores and mountains. Organized within a geologic and natural history framework, art and artifacts are presented in sections focusing on earth, water, flora, and fauna. This framework connects the objects to the Lake and the land, identifying the sources of materials exhibited as well as the vistas represented in the paintings and prints. In this way, the Museum hopes to provide a map of the cultural and artistic patronage of the Champlain Valley.  Among the over 100 paintings and objects on display are works by 19th-century Vermont artist Charles Louis Heyde, as well as noted Hudson River School artists Sanford Gifford, Frederic Edwin Church, and Jasper Francis Cropsey. Historical artifacts include a 400-year-old Abenaki wooden dugout canoe salvaged from the waters of Shelburne Pond, a silver masonry trowel reportedly used by the Marquis de Lafayette to the lay the cornerstone of the University of Vermont's first building, as well as ceramics, furniture, and clothing spanning the centuries of lakeside habitation.  Margaret Tamulonis, the Museum's Manager of Exhibitions and Collections and one of the exhibition's curators, said the process of pulling the exhibition together began some 18 months ago, and centered on the University's large collection of Vermont-related artifacts. "One of our goals early on," said Tamulonis, "was to highlight not only the Fleming Museum's permanent collection of artifacts, but other University of Vermont collections as well."  To that end the exhibition features artifacts collected by the Museum as well as objects from other University departments such as Bailey/Howe Library's Special Collections, the Pringle Herbarium, and the Anthropology Department. The artifacts include both pre- and post-European contact material, such as stone tools, maps, furniture, textiles, and baskets.  According to the Fleming Museum's Curator of Exhibitions and Collections Aimee Marcereau DeGalan, who joined Tamulonis in curating the exhibition after joining the Museum last year, having the art and artifacts displayed in tandem with one another helps to tie the objects to the physicality of the land. "People will really get a sense of how the Champlain Valley became important as a catalyst for artists," she said, "They will experience a full range of things produced in or inspired by the Lake Champlain basin."  Marcereau DeGalan, who curated the paintings, prints, and other two-dimensional work for this exhibition, was particularly interested in what drew mid-19th century artists from the then popular Hudson River Valley to the Green Mountains, and to have that reflected in the exhibition. To represent these artistic excursions to the Valley, the Museum borrowed relevant pieces of art --from the early-19th century to contemporary works-- from private collectors and other institutions including Middlebury College and the Hudson River Museum.  A special component of the exhibition --entitled Treasures and Tales: Personal Connections to the Lake-- opens in early July, when selected objects and stories from members of the community will be displayed throughout the exhibition alongside the Museum's artifacts. Individuals, families, and organizations are encouraged to participate by sharing items of personal importance (objects, pictures, mementoes, etc.) that relate to their own experience of the Lake, its environs and history.