History, Natural History & the Arts
Getting Better
Stand by a small stream,
creek or rivulet and listen.
Listen how water
finds its way around the stones
or logs lying in shallows.
Though you do not know
the language let it flow
into your mind and soothe.
This in a world that seems
to be flying apart. At that
small stream and with
both feet planted and ears open,
arrive at where you are.
Then, as you move forward
mulling its murmured monologue,
take its blessing with you.
The Albany County Historical Association has partnered with Confetti Stage to present “A Summer Afternoon’s Dream: Shakespeare Monologues in the Ten Broeck Gardens,” set for Saturday August 22 from 2 to 3:30 pm. [Read more…] about Shakespeare Monologues in Ten Broeck Gardens
The Hyde Collection has announced they will be offering free admission to all essential workers and their families throughout the month of August as a thank you for their service during the COVID-19 crisis.
After being closed for several months because of the pandemic, The Hyde Collection reopened to visitors on the first of the month. [Read more…] about Hyde Collection Welcomes Essential Workers For Free
By August We Pray for a Killing Frost
This summer our bumper zucchini
crop way outweighed
the entire oeuvre of Puccini.
Neighbors early on inveighed
against the chronic lack of canning jars.
By mid-July you couldn’t give a squash away.
People started locking their cars.
I logged my days’ cholesterol work-out miles
wheeling barrows-full to multiple compost piles.
The year was 1911, a new decade had just started. In spite of sharp social divisions and mass immigration, New York was bustling. The scientific revolution was making an impact, radically altering the nineteenth century vision of the world.
New technology changed the face of the metropolis. The Woolworth Building had been completed, making it the tallest building in town. Electric trains pulled out of the Grand Central Terminal; in the streets horse-drawn carriages were being replaced by automobiles.
It was a period of unbridled patriotism; a golden age for producers of flags and buntings (in April 1908 Emma Goldman had given her fiery San Francisco lecture on the ‘menace’ of patriotism).
New York was waking-up and starting to fulfill its potential. It was a place of new developments and initiatives. Modern was the buzzword. That year a group of artists came together aiming to organize a grand exhibition that would reflect this new confidence. [Read more…] about The Armory Show: An Arsenal of Creative Freedom
The Frick Collection has announced that it is set to reopen to the public in early 2021 in the former site of the Whitney Museum of American Art at 945 Madison Avenue.
The temporary location, called Frick Madison, will house the Frick’s collections, programs, and staff during the renovation and expansion of its historic buildings at 1 East 70th Street. [Read more…] about Frick Collection Reopening in 2021 at ‘Frick Madison’
NorthWind Fine Arts has announced “Paint & Pixels,” a dual show of new works by award-winning area artists painter Catherine Hartung and photographer Russ Hartung. [Read more…] about NorthWind Fine Arts Paint & Pixels Show
Down by the Pond
When I was 10,
I had a gift. I knew
what silence
meant to frogs.
The Sembrich has launched “Enrico in the Jungle,” the fourth installment of its 20/20: Musical Visionaries summer festival, which looks at the life of Enrico Caruso. [Read more…] about Enrico Caruso & Werner Hertzog’z Fitzcarraldo
Due to their popularity, the combined 47th Annual Art Show and Adirondack Woodcrafts Show have been extended to run through August 16th.
The combined shows feature the work of local artists and artisans for sale, including paintings in various mediums, photography, and a variety of unique woodcrafts. [Read more…] about Tupper Arts Extends Shows, Opens Sculpture Exhibit