An Oldie

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Taken in May 2015 at Storm King Art Center. I love the way the tree seems to dwarf the sculpture, when in fact the sculpture is much taller than the tree. I also like the bands of color: the green grass and foliage; the blue sky; and the grey clouds.

The sculpture is called Pyramidian and it was created by Mark di Suvero. It’s made of steel and is 65 x 46 x 46 ft. and is a gift of the Ralph E. Ogden Foundation.

According to the Storm King Art Center web site:

Pyramidian is the tallest di Suvero sculpture in Storm King’s permanent collection. Di Suvero began working on it in his Long Island City, New York studio in 1986. It came to Storm King unfinished in 1995 and was installed for di Suvero’s retrospective exhibition. At that time, the space inside the pyramid was empty, and a 60-foot beam was placed in the field parallel to the sculpture. For a time, the beam served as a bench for viewing Pyramidian. In 1998, di Suvero finished the work onsite. He used the 60-foot beam to create an inverted T-shape, suspended by cables inside the pyramid. Today, it serves as a visual anchor in the South Fields.

A short visit to New Hartford, Connecticut – River in the frame

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What a clever idea! Apparently it’s a memorial to the late Pat Keener who passed away July 8, 2010.

According to her obituary:

“When time comes for us to again rejoin the infinite stream of water flowing to and from the great timeless ocean, our little droplet of soulful water will once again flow with the endless stream.”-William E. Marks In the early morning hours of July 8, 2010 surrounded by her children, Terrah, Jeff, and Shelia, Pat peacefully passed on. Pat was a “big” and vibrant presence and she will be lovingly missed by her family, friends and community. Additionally the UCONN women’s basketball team has lost their most devoted fan; the family is even thinking of inviting Christie’s Auction House to appraise her Women’s Husky memorabilia. Pat believed in experiencing life to its fullest, taking an active role in her community, enjoying the company of family and friends, seeing the world but ever vigilant to leave the smallest ecological footprint possible. She has left this a better world for us and generations to come as a result of her passionate commitment to protecting our rivers, wetlands, forests and our natural and native plant life. She will also be remembered by many for her strong beliefs and commitment to education. Pat was a veracious reader and she was instrumental in the vision and the creation of The Licia & Mason Beekley Community Library in New Hartford. Her love of books is something she has passed on to her grandchildren and she could often be seen sitting and reading with them. A testament to a life well lived is often what is left behind when a person passes. We celebrate Pat’s BIG life and the world she has left for us. In her professional life Pat will be most remembered for her work as a special education teacher and administrator with Shared Services and Northwest Regional 7 High School. She was also very proud of her work as an instructor with the department of Psychology at Northwest Connecticut Community College. As a community activist Pat will be remembered for her passion and tireless work with the Farmington River Coordinating Committee (FRCC), the Farmington River Watershed Association (FRWA), the Inland Wetlands Commission, the New Hartford Conservation Commission, Open Space Planning, the River Network, The Licia & Mason Beekley Community Library, CPTV, and the many other social and political initiatives and projects that she attached her star to. Pat is survived by her three children and four grandchildren. Terrah Keener and her spouse Pattie LaCroix and their two sons, Ellis and Damen of Halifax, Nova Scotia; her son Jeffrey Keener and his wife Janet and their daughter Erin of Granby, CT; and her daughter Shelia McManus and her husband Steve and their son Iain of Marion, MA. Pat leaves many, many dear friends to mourn her loss. She will be greatly missed by the community and the friends and family she loved. A memorial to celebrate her life and work will be held on Saturday (July 17, 2010) at Squires Tavern, 100 East River Road Pleasant Valley, CT 2-4 p.m. To honor Pat’s legacy donations made be made to the Pat Keener Scholarship fund awarded to a high school or college student from one of the five riverfront towns (Barkhamsted, Canton, Colebrook, Hartland and New Hartford) going on to college to study environmental science. Contact www.farmingtonriver.org. As well an outdoor sculpture, framing the Farmington River has been conceived to honor and recognize the committed efforts of Pat and her work on the behalf of the Farmington River and its surrounding habitat.

Unfortunately I have no idea who the artist is.

Taken with a Sony RX-100 M3.

Hudson River School Painters at Boscobel

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This is one of a series of sculptures (busts?) of Hudson River School painters to be found at Boscobel in Cold Spring NY.

This one is of Thomas Moran.

According to Wikipedia:

Thomas Moran (February 12, 1837 – August 25, 1926) was an American painter and printmaker of the Hudson River School in New York whose work often featured the Rocky Mountains. Moran and his family, wife Mary Nimmo Moran and daughter Ruth, took residence in New York where he obtained work as an artist. He was a younger brother of the noted marine artist Edward Moran, with whom he shared a studio. A talented illustrator and exquisite colorist, Thomas Moran was hired as an illustrator at Scribner’s Monthly. During the late 1860s, he was appointed the chief illustrator for the magazine, a position that helped him launch his career as one of the premier painters of the American landscape, in particular, the American West.

Moran along with Albert Bierstadt, Thomas Hill, and William Keith are sometimes referred to as belonging to the Rocky Mountain School of landscape painters because of all of the Western landscapes made by this group.

I had taken some pictures before (See: Boscobel – Sculptures of Hudson River School Artists), but it seems that they have added a number of new sculptures since then. Unfortunately, I had to rush off and was unable to photograph any of the other new ones.

Taken with a Sony A77II and Tamron A18 AF 18-250mm f3.5-6.3