Mohawk Valley history comes alive through
Museums and Galleries
Browse through the featured museums and galleries that highlight the history of the Mohawk Valley.
Museums, Galleries and Historic Sites
George Hendrickson
Events
VIRTUAL TOUR: THAW COLLECTION OF AMERICAN INDIAN ART
A virtual tour via Zoom of of our world-renowned Thaw Collection of American Indian art.
January 31, February 21, & March 14 • 2:00pm (30 min.)
Fenimore Art Museum’s Thaw Collection of American Indian Art showcases incredible examples of Native American artistry, craftsmanship, and ingenuity from across North America. Basketry, masks, weapons, clothing, ceramics, weavings, and much more spanning dozens of cultures and hundreds of years is featured in our Thaw Gallery.
Join Associate Curator of American Art, Julia Madore, on a special virtual Zoom tour of this stunning and important collection, followed by a live question and answer session. View the full description and reserve your spot here.
About Fenimore Art Museum
Fenimore Art Museum, located on the shores of Otsego Lake—James Fenimore Cooper’s “Glimmerglass”—in historic Cooperstown, New York, features a wide-ranging collection of American art including folk art; important American 18th- and 19th-century landscape, genre, and portrait paintings; more than 125,000 historic photographs representing the technical developments made in photography and providing extensive visual documentation of the region’s unique history; and the renowned Eugene and Clare Thaw Collection of American Indian Art comprised of nearly 900 art objects representative of a broad geographic range of North American Indian cultures, from the Northwest Coast, Eastern Woodlands, Plains, Southwest, Great Lakes, and Prairie regions. Visit FenimoreArt.org.
February 7 – 11, 2023, from 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Children of all ages are invited to make old-fashioned handmade cards.
Cut, paste, and decorate with provided materials. Art projects are designed for ages four and up. This is a fun way for children to get creative and use their hands to make something they will be excited to share with a friend or loved one.
A virtual tour via Zoom of Fenimore Art Museum’s extensive American folk art collection.
January 24, February 7, & March 28 • 2:00pm (30 min.)
Join us for a virtual Zoom tour, with live narration, of Fenimore Art Museum’s collection of American folk art, featuring some of the most important names in folk art such as Anna Mary Robertson (“Grandma” Moses), Edward Hicks, Ralph Fasanella, and more. The tour includes a look at 19th century portraits, carvings, traditional crafts, and much more.
The 20-minute virtual tour will be followed by a live Q&A session with Kevin Gray, Manager of Arts Education.
View the full description and reserve your spot here.
About Fenimore Art Museum
Fenimore Art Museum, located on the shores of Otsego Lake—James Fenimore Cooper’s “Glimmerglass”—in historic Cooperstown, New York, features a wide-ranging collection of American art including folk art; important American 18th- and 19th-century landscape, genre, and portrait paintings; more than 125,000 historic photographs representing the technical developments made in photography and providing extensive visual documentation of the region’s unique history; and the renowned Eugene and Clare Thaw Collection of American Indian Art comprised of nearly 900 art objects representative of a broad geographic range of North American Indian cultures, from the Northwest Coast, Eastern Woodlands, Plains, Southwest, Great Lakes, and Prairie regions. Visit FenimoreArt.org.
With Brendan Mills of John Brown Farm SHS Wednesday, February 8, 2023 12:00 PM
Schoharie Crossing State Historic Site
Brendan Mills, Historic Site Manager at John Brown Farm will discuss the lasting impact of Brown, his efforts toward emancipation of Blacks in America, and what his homestead in the Adirondacks of NY continues to offer as a focus toward social change.
Free and open to the public. No registration required.
WebEx free web meeting platform, link goes live at 11:50am. Virtual via WebEx.
About the Schoharie Crossing State Historic Site
Schoharie Crossing State Historic Site is dedicated to the preservation and interpretation of the Erie Canal as one of the 19th century’s greatest commercial and engineering projects. The Visitor Center exhibit traces the history of the Erie Canal and its impact on the growth of New York State and the nation.
Within the site’s boundaries are many structures dating from the three eras of the canal’s development. At the eastern end of the site is the Putnam Lock Stand at Yankee Hill that houses an exhibit on Erie Canal stores. The site’s largest structure is the remains of the Schoharie Aqueduct, which carried the water of the Enlarged Erie Canal over the Schoharie Creek.
Schoharie Crossing is also the location of 18th century Fort Hunter and the Lower Castle Mohawk village. See artifacts from that portion of our history on display at the Visitor Center.
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 8TH, 7PM (Virtual Presentation)
This presentation will discuss the construction and success of the Erie Canal and the subsequent “canal craze” that sparked the idea of a Great Sacandaga Canal. Discover the area’s efforts to expand their commercial reach as they sought to draw raw goods and resources from the Sacandaga Valley and throughout the Adirondack Mountains down to the Mohawk Valley, and wider global economic market.
David Brooks is the Education Director at Schoharie Crossing State Historic Site in Fort Hunter, N.Y. – within the system of sites operated by the NYS Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation. Schoharie Crossing interprets and preserves the significant history of the Erie Canal and its contributions to the state as well as the nation.
The Mohawk Center for the Arts is offering winter classes on Thursdays with Doug Whitfield featuring Oil Painting Made Simple, 1:30pm-3:30pm, Feb 9 – Mar 16. Contact MVCA or visit https://mohawkvalleyarts.org for details.
The Story of Melpomene • February 10 – March 17, 2023
Opening Reception Friday, February 10, 6:00 pm. • Free and Open to the Public.
Opening reception for solo exhibition of photographer, Stevia Ndoe. Drinks and light refreshments will be served.
Artist Statement
My art answers the questions my younger self was too scared to ask. Growing up in an immigrant’s household, I felt as though there were certain topics I was not allowed to ask, let alone think about. I grew up with the idea that I was lucky to be growing up in the “land of the free” and questioning anything about my position in society was basically forbidden. Now as a creative, I use my artistic tools and skills to investigate issues I am passionate about. Whether it be about black liberation, ableism, or the dynamic within my immigrant household, I use my art as a means for exploration and my artwork is a visualization of the questions I have been exploring since childhood. I am traditionally a fine arts photographer and I draw inspiration from artists Dawoud Bey, La Toya Ruby Fraiser, and Gordon Parks. Parks’s usage of photography as a means to expose the realities of life resonates deeply with me and I try to practice that through my art. I draw a lot of inspiration from Fraiser’s composition style, especially from her series “The Notion of Family.” Bey’s composition and the connection he makes with his subjects is the root of much of my work and encourages me to get more familiar to the people I take photos of. I aim for the viewers of my work to feel a part of my pieces, not just spectators. Much of my work is very personal and all-encompassing–it is meant to be immersive, not just seen. In a key minimalist approach with my photos, therefore they are not abstract at first glance, but are conceptually intriguing and philosophical. My goal for my work is to make my viewer ask more questions about themselves and their position in society. I want my artwork to not only be a statement of self-reflection but a call to action for those engaging with it. I started my trajectory into the arts as a film photographer and the skills I’ve learned from the medium (and continue to learn from it) are practices I use in my work every day. Because of the cost of film and film development, there is little room for error with the pictures I take. I only have so many frames to get the image I want and because of that, I am very meticulous when it comes to planning my personal projects. I create a scene in my mind, plan it out, and in one shot, I capture it the best I can. As I expand my artwork into other mediums and forms of photography, such as digital photography, I keep that same work ethic with me. Additionally, I love film because of how personal the film developing process is. I shoot, develop, scan, and print my own work and through this process, I feel a special sort of connection between mean the photos I take. I see them from the point they are an idea/sketch to their physical conception and because of that, it makes the process of creating all the more special and unique.
February 7 – 11, 2023, at 2:00 p.m.
Searching for Timbuctoo tells the little-known story of a Black settlement established in the wilds of upstate New York that brought together a group of ardent abolitionists willing to risk their fortunes, families, and futures to destroy slavery.
This feature-length documentary reveals the hidden history of this long-lost community and the search for the elusive Timbuctoo settlement. A Q&A session with writer and director Paul A. Miller will follow the film. In-person only.
Schoharie Crossing State Historic Site
Visit the Schoharie Crossing State Historic Site for the return of Museum Monday. We’ll be open during the off season for a couple hours on select Monday’s while offering refreshing discussion on a topic relevant to the month.
February we’ll look at slavery in the Mohawk Valley and the lack of evidence showing black labor on the construction of the Erie Canal while you check out the Pathway to Empire exhibit.
Short presentation is at 11:30am.
About the Schoharie Crossing State Historic Site
Schoharie Crossing State Historic Site is dedicated to the preservation and interpretation of the Erie Canal as one of the 19th century’s greatest commercial and engineering projects. The Visitor Center exhibit traces the history of the Erie Canal and its impact on the growth of New York State and the nation.
Within the site’s boundaries are many structures dating from the three eras of the canal’s development. At the eastern end of the site is the Putnam Lock Stand at Yankee Hill that houses an exhibit on Erie Canal stores. The site’s largest structure is the remains of the Schoharie Aqueduct, which carried the water of the Enlarged Erie Canal over the Schoharie Creek.
Schoharie Crossing is also the location of 18th century Fort Hunter and the Lower Castle Mohawk village. See artifacts from that portion of our history on display at the Visitor Center.
Join us for a live discussion via Zoom of author James Fenimore Cooper, artist Thomas Cole, and the Hudson River School of landscape painters.
January 17, February 14, & March 7 • 2:00pm (30 min.)
Writer James Fenimore Cooper and artist Thomas Cole were friends whose works inspired a love for the sublime American landscape. Join Assistant Curator Ann Cannon for a live virtual tour exploring our collection featuring memorabilia from the Cooper family, as well as a variety of paintings by Thomas Cole and other key members of the Hudson River School.
The tour will be followed by a live Q&A session with Ann Cannon, Associate Curator of American Art.
View the full description and reserve your spot here.
About Fenimore Art Museum
Fenimore Art Museum, located on the shores of Otsego Lake—James Fenimore Cooper’s “Glimmerglass”—in historic Cooperstown, New York, features a wide-ranging collection of American art including folk art; important American 18th- and 19th-century landscape, genre, and portrait paintings; more than 125,000 historic photographs representing the technical developments made in photography and providing extensive visual documentation of the region’s unique history; and the renowned Eugene and Clare Thaw Collection of American Indian Art comprised of nearly 900 art objects representative of a broad geographic range of North American Indian cultures, from the Northwest Coast, Eastern Woodlands, Plains, Southwest, Great Lakes, and Prairie regions. Visit FenimoreArt.org.
Discover the history of the Mohawk Valley
The Mohawk Valley is located along the Mohawk River in the ancestral lands of the Kanienʼkehá:ka’ (Mohawk) and Oneida. We offer our deepest respect to Hodinöhsö:ni’ ancestors, past and present.
