The latest episode of Empire State Engagements features a conversation with Ashley Hopkins-Benton of the New York State Museum. She discussed her panel exhibition on the history of the Pride Center of the Capital Region, as well as her work to recover and incorporate more LGBTQ+ history into the State Museum’s content. [Read more…] about Ashley Hopkins-Benton On LGBTQ+ History At NYS Museum
Material Culture
Conservation of Livingston Family Portraits Underway
The Columbia County Historical Society (CCHS) has been awarded a matching Historic Preservation Grant from the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution, which will fund the restoration of two historically significant portraits in the CCHS Permanent Collection.
The portraits, which date to the early and mid 19th century, feature members of one of Columbia County’s most important and influential families: the Livingstons. [Read more…] about Conservation of Livingston Family Portraits Underway
Red Jacket Peace Medal Returned to Seneca Nation by Buffalo Museum
The Red Jacket Peace Medal, an object of cultural patrimony under federal law, has been returned to the Seneca Nation by The Buffalo History Museum.
The medal, considered to be of central importance by many in the Nation, was gifted to Seneca Chief Red Jacket by President George Washington in 1792 to commemorate discussions that culminated in the Treaty of Canandaigua of 1794, in which the Seneca Nation played a crucial role. The medal was meant to be a symbol of peace, friendship, and enduring relationships among the United States and the Six Nations. [Read more…] about Red Jacket Peace Medal Returned to Seneca Nation by Buffalo Museum
Military Material Culture,1609-1815: Fort Ti Conference Call for Papers
Fort Ticonderoga has issued a call for papers for “Material Matters: It’s In the Details, a Material Culture Conference” set for January, 2022. [Read more…] about Military Material Culture,1609-1815: Fort Ti Conference Call for Papers
New Publication Focuses on American Folk Art and Americana
Americana Insights, a new nonprofit e-journal and multi-faceted resource center, has been launched by Jane Katcher, Americana and American folk art collector, in collaboration with David A. Schorsch, an authority on American antiques and folk art.
The digital publication is supported by an advisory board of museum and art-world professionals and edited by independent scholar, author, and curator Robert Shaw. [Read more…] about New Publication Focuses on American Folk Art and Americana
Concrete, Plywood and Soviet Spies
In fiction, poetry or song, houses are treated as living organisms. They are noble, respectable, or infamous. There are houses of high rank and those of low repute – houses have human characteristics and their individual biographies.
The Isokon Building in Hampstead tells a striking tale of recent historical events. At the time of completion, it was one of the few modernist dwellings in London’s cityscape; the block of flats housed a number of notable refugees from Nazi Germany; almost simultaneously it served as a recruitment office for Soviet spies. Crucial aspects of post-war American cultural and political developments originated in a few flats in this leafy corner of North West London. [Read more…] about Concrete, Plywood and Soviet Spies
Annual East Hampton Antiques & Design Show Goes Virtual
The East Hampton Historical Society on Long Island has announced their signature summer event, the East Hampton Antiques & Design Show, will be held in a virtual format this year. [Read more…] about Annual East Hampton Antiques & Design Show Goes Virtual
NYS Pandemic Documentation Initiative Underway
The Office of Cultural Education (OCE), made up of the New York State Archives, Library and Museum, has been working to support New York State’s cultural community throughout the COVID-19 Pandemic. [Read more…] about NYS Pandemic Documentation Initiative Underway
A Modernist Merry-Go-Round
Said to be born somewhere in “America” on September 11, 1905, Kathryn Hamill is an intriguing figure whose presence has been strangely ignored.
Typically mentioned in the context of her fling with novelist Patricia Highsmith, little else is known about her. Even photographic images appear to be missing. A one-time Ziegfeld dancer, she married a British publisher, studied medicine in Cambridge, lived in one of London’s iconic modernist houses, and committed suicide. A biographer’s challenge. Surely. [Read more…] about A Modernist Merry-Go-Round
Warrensburgh Local History Museum Goes Online
Virtually the entire collection of the Warrensburgh Museum of Local History in Warren County, NY, is now available online.
[Read more…] about Warrensburgh Local History Museum Goes Online