Founded by curator Helen Toomer, co-founder of Marbletown’s Stoneleaf Retreat artist residency, the Upstate Art Weekend launched in 2020 with a roster of 23 venues organizing mainly outdoor exhibits and installations. Back for its third go-around, this year’s three-day, self-guided event will include 145 museums, art institutions, galleries, local businesses, and artists. Running from Friday, July 22 to Sunday, July 24, there will be over 100 special exhibitions and projects plus 50 open studios to choose from. With so much to see and so little time to see it in, here are our top picks for which shows to visit during the 2022 Upstate Art Weekend.
Women’s Studio Workshop Book Fair
Rosendale multidisciplinary arts organization the Women’s Studio Workshop will host its first-ever annual book fair on July 23. The event will feature art books by over 30 artists, writers, and independent publishers, and will run from 10am to 5pm. Attendees can shop for zines, artists’ books, and other printed matter, both inside the studio and outside on WSW’s patio. A free opening exhibition and dance party will follow from 7pm to 10pm.
“Urgent Beings” at Headstone Gallery
Works by painter Ashley Eliza Williams that were inspired by the life of environmentalist Rachel Carson will be featured in “Urgent Beings,” an exhibit at the newly opened Headstone Gallery in Kingston, from July 2 to 31. The 1,200-square-foot gallery space was created by artists Lauren Aitken and Chase Folsom and features strictly two-person and solo exhibitions of contemporary artwork by emerging and established artists from all over North America. In graphic novel style, Williams’s new work reflects the isolation of the pandemic as well as inspiration from nature.
Foreland
The Upstate Art Weekend programming in the three gallery spaces at Catskill’s Foreland multiarts complex for the July 22-24 weekend will include four concurrent exhibitions by some of the most prolific programs in contemporary art: DOCUMENT, New Discretions, SITUATIONS, and JAG Projects. Food will be served by Atelier Ku-Ki in the complex’s Water Street parking lot; also promised are performances by two artists yet to be announced and “a very sweaty event.”
Amelia Biewald Open Studio
Artist Amelia Biewald has been active in Brooklyn and works with a wide variety of materials creating painterly drawings and sculptural works, which often culminate in large multitextural installations. She has received various artist awards, residencies, and fellowships for her work, including the Skowhegan Residency, a Bush Foundation Fellowship, and a Jerome Fellowship. In conjunction with Upstate Art Weekend, she’ll be hosting viewers at her New Paltz studio.
Liz Nielson’s Forcefield
Presented by the Strongroom arts organization in Newburgh, Liz Nielsen’s Forcefield is a large-scale, site-specific installation at the city’s historic Dutch Reformed Church. The work will be viewable between 8pm and midnight every night through September. For the piece, Nielsen has “encased” the 1835 Greek Revival church in a glowing, 60-foot-tall “forcefield” of lights that respond to the sound of the community’s heartbeats.
“T” Space
Visitors to “T” Space art and architecture reserve in Rhinebeck may take guided tours of the 30-acre site, which includes an installation trail with permanent outdoor installations by Richard Nonas, Oscar Tuazon, and others. On July 22 at 11am and July 24 at noon, guided tours of the experimental Ex of In House by Steven Holl will take place (reservations recommended); on July 23 from 1pm to 4pm, artist Arlene Shechet will be at the “T” Space Gallery to talk about her installation.
"Birds of a Feather" at Ethan Cohen Gallery
Concurrent with Upstate Art Weekend at the Kube Art Center’s Ethan Cohen Gallery in Beacon is “Birds of a Feather,” a group exhibition of over 80 artists on view through July 31. The exhibition showcases works by artists living and working in the Beacon area and its environs as well as works by artists from around the world who are part of the gallery’s global program.
Pamela Salisbury Gallery
Wrapping up at Pamela Salisbury Gallery in Hudson on July 24, just in time for Upstate Art Weekend, are five individual exhibitions of multiple works: “Wander” by Valerie Hammond and Kiki Smith, “Greetings and Offerings” by Shari Mendelson, “Memento Mori” by Portia Munson, “Para Pastoral” by Jennifer Coates, and “Sessions” by Phoebe Helander. Visit website for gallery hours and more information.
“Mistakes Were Made” at Mother-in-Law’s
At Mother-in-Law’s Front Room Gallery in Germantown through August 21 is “Mistakes Were Made,” an exhibition of works by Jennifer Dalton and other sympathetic artists that deals with the subject of “apology.” “In the exhibition,” reads the gallery’s statement, “Dalton renders excerpts from public apology texts in a craft vernacular inspired by Etsy and beach town Airbnbs.”
"Metatem" at Hinterland
All-women artist/artisan cooperative Hinterland was launched in Shokan in 2017 by transplanted New York designer Jennifer Salvemini. In addition to Salvemini herself, Hinterland’s roster includes 10 visual artists Katie Westmoreland and Marcie Paper, ceramicist Erica Recto, metalworker Alison Zavracky, textile artisan Nancy Geany, wildcrafted skincare maven Babs Mansfield of Phoenicia Soap Co., stained glass maker Brenna Chase of Willow Deep Studio, event planner Sophie Grant, and singer-songwriter and clothing designer Nyamka Ayinde. The co-op will participate in UAW with "Metatem," an immersive, multisensory concept designed to highlight art as a dialectic between the external world and internal processes—a dance between the art and the experiencer.
