Arts Archives - The Adirondack Almanack Archive

At the May meeting of the Old Forge Library’s Board of Trustees, the board was pleased to learn that the Cloudsplitter Foundation has awarded the library a 1:1 matching fund opportunity toward current fundraising efforts.

Cloudsplitter Foundation is a philanthropic organization in Saranac Lake who donates to worthwhile projects primarily in the Adirondack region.

Director Linda Weal shared a letter from Cloudsplitter which described the opportunity as a dollar for dollar match of donations, with a $10,000 fundraising goal. When the library has raised $10,000, the Cloudsplitter Foundation will then issue an additional $10,000 in funding.

Tuesday, May 24, 2022

Meet Adirondack artisan Bob Jones and learn about his work

by Melissa Hart

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Adirondack artisan Bob Jones, Cranberry Lake, has been carving for more than 50 years and making decoys professionally for decades. At the end of 2021, Tom French, a contributor to Adirondack Explorer, interviewed Bob and his wife, Linda and wrote this story about them.

Tuesday, May 24, 2022

Illusionist Leon Etienne returns to The Strand Theatre for live Magic Rocks! performances Memorial Day Weekend

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Illusionist Leon Etienne has sold out venues all over the world with performances of his interactive, energetic, family-friendly show, Magic Rocks! Now break out the rock music and leather attire because Etienne is returning to Central New York with his world-renowned show to continue his support for the Old Forge community by performing a series of shows at The Strand Theatre. The performance will include some old favorites and brand new, never-before-seen illusions sure to leave attendees asking… “How did he DO that?!”

“We had such an awesome time last summer at The Strand that we had to return for more,” Leon Etienne said. “We’re so excited to be back in Old Forge this summer with your favorite illusions and some new tricks up our sleeves!”

As seen on America’s Got Talent, Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, Penn & Teller Fool Us, and more, Etienne has toured the world with his critically-acclaimed hit show, Magic Rocks! The 70-minute, one-of-a-kind, 100-percent interactive comedy and magic show is sure to bring joy, wonder, laughter, and whimsy during a time when the world certainly needs it. Etienne and his lead assistant, Chelsea LaCongo, will be performing at The Strand Theatre in Old Forge on Memorial Day Weekend, Saturday and Sunday, May 28 and 29 at 8 p.m. Tickets are available for $25 per person. Visit OldForgeMagic.com for additional showtimes and to purchase tickets.

Originally opening in 1923, The Strand Theatre has played a fundamental role in Adirondack tourism for nearly 100 years. From its iconic marquee to the old-fashioned popcorn machine, many vintage elements still reside in The Strand Theatre, making supporters feel transported in time the moment they step foot inside the theatre.

The Covid-19 pandemic forced the Old Forge staple to temporarily close and it is still recovering from losses.

“It’s been a tough time for business owners, but things are starting to look up!” Etienne said. “We want to continue to give back to The Strand and the Old Forge community. What better way to give back than returning with new illusions and more fun?”

For more information on the above events, please contact: Natasha Kirkland of The Marketing Firm at 315.796.8059 or [email protected] or Tony Bartolotti of The Marketing Firm at 315.796.8059 or [email protected]

Photo at top provided by Leon Etienne.

Monday, May 23, 2022

The Hyde Collection Announces 31st Annual High School Juried Art Show & Showcases Winners

Best of Show: Kyla McByrne, Queensbury High School, “Sticky Situation,” acrylic painting.

The Hyde Collection is excited to announce its 31st Annual High School Juried Art Show showcasing the artistic talent of young artists from Warren, Washington, Saratoga, Hamilton, and Essex counties. This year’s high school artists employ diverse media, including drawing, painting, digital illustration, photography, jewelry, sculpture, and ceramics. The Hyde Collection is honored to
support promising young artists and students in the capital region.

“The High School Juried Art Show is an amazing opportunity for area high school student artists to learn and experience the finer points of a professional competitive exhibition process. As one of the nation’s longest-running high school juried shows, we are proud to continue providing this opportunity for our region’s amazing young artists,” said The Hyde Collection’s Director of Curatorial Affairs, Jonathan Canning.

In an extensive jurying process, judges selected 100 pieces of artwork for the exhibition from 443 submissions from 182 students in 13 schools. The entries were judged by a panel of jurors featuring three professional artists from our region: Anne Diggory, Doretta Miller, and Victoria van der Lann, each of whom has a work in The Hyde’s permanent collection.

Winners were announced May 7 at the opening reception, attended by 170 people in The Helen Froehlich Auditorium. Awards were given to the artwork in categories of Best of Show, Curator’s Award, Juror’s Awards, and Honorable Mentions. The Visitor’s Choice Award will be awarded at the conclusion of the exhibition. All winners received a $250 scholarship for an art class at SUNY Adirondack and every student artist received a prize pack.

Sunday, May 22, 2022

Save the Date: Great Camp Sagamore’s Annual Gala & Benefit for Historic Preservation on Aug. 6

Great Camp Sagamore staff are excited to welcome the community back, in-person, on August 6, 2022 for their Annual Gala & Benefit for Historic Preservation. Join the festivities for an evening of great food, exciting live & silent auctions, and even better company in the heart of Forever Wild.

This year staff are celebrating the many dedicated members of the community – visitors, volunteers, donors, artisans, musicians, and local business owners and residents – who keep Great Camp Sagamore the treasured place it has been for 125 years.

Stay the Weekend:

Enjoy more time at camp! Join in from August 5-7, 2022 for Gala weekend programming. Weekend packages will include lodging and meals for Friday & Saturday. Gather with friends and enjoy special activities on Friday night, including music and gourmet s’mores around the campfire, a picnic lunch on Saturday, and many other activities before the Gala & Benefit.

Weekend packages do not include Gala & Benefit Dinner tickets for Saturday night. Lodging availability is limited and reserved on a first-come-basis. Booking information will be available on the Great Camp Sagamore webpage soon.

Consider Becoming an Event Sponsor:

Sponsorships allow Great Camp Sagamore staff to continue providing quality, diverse programming that serves and uplifts a wide range of people, while maintaining reasonable prices and increasing scholarships amid rising costs. Deciding to sponsor this annual celebration also provides you with tangible benefits, which can be found through this link.

Great Camp Sagamore opens to the public on Memorial Day Weekend, May 27.

Find more information about Great Camp Sagamore here: https://www.sagamore.org/

Photo at top: A previous Great Camp Sagamore Annual Gala & Benefit for Historic Preservation. Photo courtesy of Great Camp Sagamore.

Friday, May 20, 2022

Creative Adirondacks: Photographer Skip Murray

by Linda Friedman Ramirez

Skip Murray is a fine arts photographer who values the art of taking a good photograph more than the type of camera equipment he is using. Whether it’s the delight in a child’s face, the dynamic energy of brilliant holiday fireworks, or the collective joy of a summer Saturday market, Skip’s focus is capturing the emotional essence of what he is photographing. His camera, currently a Nikon SLR, almost seems like an afterthought, although he is sure to have it with him. Whether he’s planning on photographing an event, or not, you’ll see Skip with his camera around his neck on the off chance that he sees a shot he would not want to miss. He’s also not adverse to taking a photo with an iPhone.

Thursday, May 19, 2022

The Fort William Henry Museum Introduces New Augmented Reality Exhibit

The Fort William Henry Museum, a major cultural destination and landmark located on the southern shore of Lake George, nestled amid New York’s Adirondack Mountains, opened May 1 for its 2022 season and is introducing a brand-new Augmented Reality (AR) exhibit inside the North Barracks.

The new AR experience, created by Frameless Technologies, puts the viewer directly into the siege of Fort William Henry. It features a bird’s eye view of The Fort, the Entrenched Camp, and the French siegeworks firing at The Fort itself. Viewers can manipulate the AR by moving their phones to explore more of the surrounding area. The stylized AR image reflects one day of the siege, August 8, 1757. Instructions on downloading the app and viewing the AR are available onsite at the museum.

The Fort William Henry Museum is now open daily, from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Monday, May 16, 2022

‘The Bakery’ concert series: Four performances in Keene Valley this Spring

‘The Bakery’ concert series ‘Music for Contemplation’ will present four performances this Spring featuring musicians from Keene Valley, New York City, Rochester, and Chazy. Each performance will
center on music composed post 1900 including original works and improvisation. The series will be presented in collaboration with Old Mountain Coffee in Keene Valley and will be curated to present music which is meditative, relaxing, and experimental.

Each ‘Bakery’ concert is carefully curated to focus on sharing music and musicians from a wide variety of backgrounds including classical, pop, avante-garde, jazz, and improvisation. ‘The Bakery’ indicates the involvement of Gene and Esther BAKER, but also the idea of a place one can peruse a variety of musical treats and find something new to experience. Past performances have included music by Maurice Ravel, Ornette Coleman, Sun Ra, and Steve Reich, together with graphic scores, microtones, kitchen matches (yes, you read correctly!), improvisation with text, electronic music, cello duos and more.

Saturday, May 14, 2022

Poem: A Spring Rhyme

by Annette Pisano-Higley

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A Spring Rhyme

Along with Spring,

And things alive,

There comes something,

That can survive.

Hope there may be,

In shoots of green,

In every tree,

And verdant scene.

When ill winds blow,

Hope them away,

With loving hearts,

They cannot stay.

For better times,

And promise true,

This little rhyme,

Is sent to you.

Wednesday, May 11, 2022

Crandall Library to Showcase Artwork Created by Veterans with PTSD

During the month of May, the Crandall Library of Glens Falls will be showcasing an art display featuring artworks made with magnets by Warren County-area Veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). All are invited to attend a public reception on the evening of Thursday, May 19 from 4 to 6 p.m. Members of the Veterans Plus group will be on hand to answer questions and describe how the inspiration and creativity inspired by this artwork has had a therapeutic effect in helping them to deal with these issues. A survivor of the Pentagon attack on 9/11 will also be in attendance and will talk about the benefits he received while creating this artwork. The Veterans Plus groups’s artwork will be on display through the month of May at the Crandall Library, located at 251 Glen Street in Glens Falls.

Monday, May 9, 2022

Award-winning mystery novelist, J.E. Irvin, to offer book signing event on May 28 in Wanakena

J.E. Irvin, a career educator and the award-winning author of five mystery novels, will visit Wanakena at 3 p.m. on Saturday, May 28, 2022, for a book talk about her latest novel – BROKEN – which is set in the hamlet. Irvin will speak about her writing process as well as the local activities and events that inspired the novel. Hosted by Ottos’ Abode, the presentation will take place in the gazebo (weather permitting) or inside the store. Books will be available for purchase and signing, and each attendee will receive a goody bag of book-related items.

Saturday, May 7, 2022

Adirondack Experience to host racial and environmental justice series

The Adirondack Experience (ADKX), a museum and nature campus, announced today that it will present an eight-part virtual program series focused on examining the intersections between racial and environmental justice. Titled Adirondacks for All: Identity & Environmental Justice in the North Country, the series will explore experiences of inequity and oppression in the Adirondacks and the ways in which those realities connect with issues of preservation, pollution, and access to land, water, and nature more broadly. Adirondacks for All is being developed in partnership with several local organizations, including the Adirondack Diversity Initiative, The Wild Center, and The Nature Conservancy in the Adirondacks, and is supported in part by a $50,000 grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services. To oversee the development of the program, ADKX has also hired Erik Reardon, a professor and scholar whose work has focused in particular on environmental history and Native American histories.

Tuesday, May 3, 2022

OurStoryBridge national oral history program receives IRS charitable nonprofit status

The Internal Revenue Service has determined that OurStoryBridge Inc., originally released September 29, 2020 as a program of the Keene Valley (NY) Library, has met the requirements for 501(c)(3) charitable nonprofit status. OurStoryBridge Inc. at www.ourstorybridge.org is a free tool kit for producing crowdsourced oral history projects collecting and sharing a community’s unique history online.

OurStoryBridge supports the creation of three- to five-minute, locally created audio stories with related photographs, as well as their online accessibility, by posting them on individual websites that
appeal to both young and old and can be produced at low cost.

Monday, May 2, 2022

Pendragon Theatre announces line up for Summer 2022

Spring has sprung and Pendragon Theatre of Saranac Lake has officially announced their summer line up of shows. This summer’s showcase offers a little something for everyone, including a new, dark play for mature audiences only, and a fun twist on a favorite children’s tale presented by Camp Pendragon. See below for details on the performances.

Sunday, April 24, 2022

Adirondack Harvest Festival returns Sept. 24, vendors and volunteers needed

Festival enthusiasts are encouraged to save the date for this year’s Adirondack Harvest Festival which will return to its traditional, one-day, in-person format at the Essex County Fairgrounds in Westport, NY on Saturday, September 24, 2022. The crowd-pleasing, family-friendly event is free and will follow the same format as past festivals. This year’s festival will feature a large farmers’ market, local food trucks, a beer tent, live music, demonstrations and talks, plenty of kids’ activities, farm animals, and much more.

Adirondack Harvest Festival organizers are actively seeking event sponsors, vendors, speakers and volunteers to make this community event possible a reality for generations to come. Those who wish to lend a hand at any of the above roles are encouraged to read more below.