Posts Tagged ‘Paul Smith’s College VIC’

Wednesday, February 19, 2014

Cross-Country Skiing:
An Adirondack Nocturne at the Paul Smith’s VIC

Twilight at the VIC, S. Hildreth

Nocturne: a work of art dealing with evening or night especially; a dreamy pensive composition for the piano that has a soft and somewhat sad melody.  – 2014 Merriam Webster Dictionary

It was Valentine’s Day, about 8 pm, and I walked out the back door, stepped into my x-country ski bindings, put on my gloves and slipped my hands through the straps on my ski poles, flipped on my headlight and silently glided into the stillness of the night. As I looked up the trail, snowflakes filtered down glittering into the beam of my light.

It was the Full Moon Friends of the VIC Ski Party and this was the evening after the big Nor’easter dropped about 10 inches of fresh snow on what was already a good solid base. There was a nice crowd at the Paul Smith’s College VIC, live music by Split Rock lighting up the great room, but I might as well have been a solitary skier. I met two other skiers coming back to the building right as I started out, and then just two more as I skied across the floating bridge on Heron Marsh. The rest of the evening was mine alone, and it was magical. » Continue Reading.


Tuesday, January 14, 2014

Adirondack Art: What is the Color of Snow?

Up Near the Black Pond CutAs an artist, I know snow isn’t white. Perhaps some of the more scientific oriented folks who read or contribute to the Almanack can offer scientific explanations. I’m going to tell you how an artist perceives snow.

This little painting, “Up Near the Black Pond Cut”, practically went viral when I posted it on my Facebook page in early December. It had nearly 300 “shares” and over 50,000 views!

It’s a winter scene – but there’s almost no white snow in it! I think the color and the light is what made it such an appealing painting. It was based on photos I’d taken last winter at the Paul Smith’s College VIC on the Esker Trail.  » Continue Reading.


Wednesday, October 9, 2013

Celebrate Loons at the Paul Smith’s VIC

There is something quite mystical about hearing a loon. Whether it’s the haunting wail that echoes across lakes or the territorial male yodel, the loon’s calls can silence everyone around it as people search for the source of the sound.

I was recently paddling a nearby Adirondack pond and was followed by a common loon.  It gave that shrill laughing sound called tremolo that is used to signal alarm. I can only assume that we were too close to its chicks. It seemed that no matter where we went, it didn’t want to share the waterway with us. We finally just sat and drifted and the loon dove underwater, reappearing on a far shore.

There are many things to understand about the loon and the Biodiversity Research Institute’s Adirondack Center for Loon Conservation and the Paul Smith’s College Visitor Interpretive Center (VIC) have joined forces for a full day of loon related activities to educate and inform all of us about this iconic bird. This free event will be held from 9 am – 5 pm on Sunday, October 13 at the VIC. » Continue Reading.


Wednesday, September 18, 2013

Park Perspectives: Regaining the Lead in Park Protection

preservationofprivateownedspace1Four decades ago the Adirondack Park Agency (APA) came into being. It was not an easy birth or infancy. Political opposition weakened this new creature even before it saw the light of day. And controversy surrounded its early years as it worked to incorporate conservation values in the regulation of private lands. Its efforts often were met with misunderstanding, misinformation, hostility, and defiance.

Its future, though, seemed as promising as its present was turbulent. Conceived with the promise of protecting the Park forever, the APA embodied the optimistic view that the Adirondacks could become a model for the world, a mix of public and private lands managed for the benefit of wild nature and human communities, natural beauty and an economy nurtured by the attractions of outdoor recreation and the wise use of natural resources. » Continue Reading.


Thursday, September 5, 2013

Art Around the Adirondacks in September

Jeri Wright photoWith September ushering in the relentless turn of colors that eventually becomes the black, white and grey of winter solitude, there is a healthy abundance of colorful art to treat the eyes. And some black and white too.

Of great significance is the fact that we once again have three new exhibits opening on Friday September 6 and more importantly, they represent, conservatively about 150 collective years of making art!

Jeri Wright, an accomplished photographer who lives in Wilmington, is having a retrospective exhibit of sixty-five years, yes, six and a half decades of photography. She must have started as a child with a Kodak “Brownie” camera! Has she made the transition to digital film – come find out! What an opportunity this will be, to see her life’s work. “Through the Years” opens Sept 6 at the Tahawus Windows Gallery, 2nd floor, 14234 Rt 9N, Main St, Au Sable Forks, NY. 646-734-7151. The opening reception will be from 5:30 – 8 pm, Sept 6, and the exhibit will continue through October 6. Jeri may also be contacted to make an appointment to see the show by calling 518-946-2658. You don’t want to miss this! » Continue Reading.


Friday, August 2, 2013

Caution: Wet Paint! Adirondack Plein Air Festival

adirondack plein air festival, adirondack artThe 5th Annual Adirondack Plein Air Festival will be taking place Aug 15-18 in the Saranac Lake area. Be forewarned – there’s going to be a lot of “wet paint”! Here’s a quick rundown of the schedule:

Thursday Aug 15: 10-3 “Paint the Town” Day. Downtown Saranac Lake. Silent Auction starts at 4 pm. 3rd Thursday ArtWalk from 5-7:30.

Friday Aug 16: 9-5 “Paint the VIC” Day. All the artists will be out on the trails at the Paul Smith’s College VIC. From 5-7 there is the opening reception for the “Plein Air Invitational” – a show of plein air paintings previously done at the VIC.

Saturday Aug 17: 9-9 “Paint the Adirondacks” Day. Artists will be free to paint wherever they choose. Watch for them! » Continue Reading.


Tuesday, July 30, 2013

Adirondack Lakes Center: Shakespeare in the Park

ShakespearePark_newFor the fourth season, the Adirondack Lakes Center for the Arts is bringing Shakespeare to the masses in a live, outdoor theatre setting. With other performances of Shrek the Musical, Cabaret and Songs for A New World, their ADK Summer Playhouse is in full swing.

The Adirondack Lakes Center for the Arts Artistic Associate Danielle Melendez says, “We are doing MacBeth this year with a twist. This year we shorted the play to an hour and 15 minutes, to its purest form and only using six actors. We have the actors playing Lady Macbeth and Macbeth, but the actors portraying the three witches also play all the supporting roles. The physicality and costumes are only part of the transition.” » Continue Reading.


Tuesday, May 21, 2013

Annual Great Adirondack Birding Celebration Next Weekend

Bicknell's ThrushThe 11th annual Great Adirondack Birding Celebration is scheduled for next weekend, 31 May – 2 June 2013, at the Paul Smith’s College Visitor Interpretive Center (VIC) in Paul Smiths, New York.

The event features field trips to boreal birding hot spots, informative lectures, and workshops. Field trips include: an all-day Birding Across the Adirondacks trip on Friday, plus a selection of half-day field trips on Saturday and Sunday (Birding by Ear at the VIC, Beginner Birder Workshop at the VIC, Bloomingdale Bog, Intervale Lowlands, Little Clear Pond for loons, Madawaska Flow, Spring Pond Bog, and Whiteface Mountain). » Continue Reading.


Wednesday, January 23, 2013

Paul Smiths VIC: A Sure Thing For Skiers

Heron Marsh at Paul Smith's VIC. Photo by Susan BibeauWinter started slowly, so after we received a few small snowfalls in late November, I jumped at the chance to go on my first ski of the season. Since we still had no base, I figured my best bet would be the Adirondack Visitor Interpretive Center in Paul Smiths.

The VIC is fun to ski anytime, but it’s a particularly good choice early in the season or in a low-snow winter. Its smooth trails don’t need a lot of snow to be skiable. » Continue Reading.


Wednesday, November 21, 2012

Stewarding the Wild Adirondacks

“We are part of a movement,” Dale Penny reminded the 50 people and representatives of 25 organizations gathered for the workshop on Nov. 3, 2012. Stewarding the Wild Adirondacks was the first workshop of its kind to bring as many of the Adirondack Park’s natural resource stewardship programs as possible together in one place to discuss ways to better collaborate. Adirondack Wild: Friends of the Forest Preserve was the workshop sponsor, and Paul Smith’s College Visitor Interpretive Center its host. International Paper helped provide underwriting support for the event.

Dale Penny is president of the Student Conservation Association, America’s conservation service organization which places over 4,200 young people annually in demanding conservation and stewardship jobs in rural and urban settings across the country, including the Adirondack Park.
» Continue Reading.


Thursday, November 1, 2012

Adirondack Stewardship Programs Meeting Saturday

The president and chief executive officer of the Student Conservation Association and Dr. Curt Stager of Paul Smith’s College will be among the speakers featured at a November 3 workshop seeking to connect the Park’s various natural resource stewardship programs together to improve communication and collaboration. The workshop is underwritten by a grant from International Paper and organized by Adirondack Wild.

“Stewardship programs for the Adirondack Park’s wild summits, lakes, backcountry and biota have proliferated as natural resource challenges have grown, yet there are few opportunities for all these programs to communicate among each other. Adirondack Wild wants to start that process,” Dan Plumley of Adirondack Wild said in a statement to the press. “Through this workshop, which has never been attempted before, we will connect a variety of programs which train and sponsor field stewards, educators and researchers.”
» Continue Reading.


Monday, September 10, 2012

Author Russell Banks Event On Thursday

The Adirondack Center for Writing (ACW) and Paul Smith’s College will host an evening with author Russell Banks on Thursday, September 13 at 7:30pm at the Paul Smith’s College VIC. Banks will read and discuss his latest novel, Lost Memory of  Skin.  A prolific writer of fiction, Russell Banks’s other titles include The Darling, The Sweet Hereafter, Cloudsplitter, Rule of the Bone, Affliction, Success Stories, and Continental Drift.

The reading starts at 7:30pm and is free to Paul Smith’s College faculty and students, $5 general admission. Books will be for sale, provided by Bookstore Plus of Lake Placid, and there will be a book signing before and after the reading. » Continue Reading.


Tuesday, July 24, 2012

Timbuctoo, Minority Voices in Nature Poetry Programs Set

Some of the nation’s most acclaimed poets from widely diverse backgrounds will read their work as it deals with nature about writing at Paul Smith’s College VIC on August 7th

The natural world is everywhere, and we all react to it differently. How does race influence a poet writing about the natural world?  For example, a tree, for a southern black writer may have sinister qualities due to the history of lynching that a northern white writer would never consider. Acclaimed poets Cornelius Eady, Aracelis Girmay and Chase Twichell will all read their work. Following the reading will be a discussion led by poet Roger Bonair-Agard. This is expected to be a provocative discussion on race, religion, and how these factors affect one’s relationship with the natural world. The program starts at 7 p.m.; the cost is $5. » Continue Reading.


Tuesday, July 10, 2012

Painting The Adks ‘Big’: Tim Fortune and Matt Burnett

Tim Fortune, watercolor paintingArt and nature. The nature of art. Nature effecting art. The Paul Smith’s College VIC, under the direction of canoe guru Brian McDonnell, is doing a pretty good job of tackling these issues. For over a year now Brian has done both the physical work of building and maintaining trails and buildings on the property and he’s also managed to have a full, year round schedule of events, programs, and some fine exhibits of art in the visitors center.

Currently on display are paintings by Saranac Lake artists Tim Fortune and Matt Burnett. Both paint the natural world of the Adirondacks and both paint big. Very accomplished small paintings are on display too, but it’s the large scale images that are truly moving. » Continue Reading.



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