By Robert Brune
WOODSTOCK - On a warm August afternoon in the Catskills, the winding road up to the Byrdcliffe Arts Colony seems to transport visitors to another era. Sunlight filters through the forest, dappling century-old cottages where artists still gather to create. In the town below, Woodstock hums with its familiar mix of galleries, restaurants, and nostalgia shops, a place where nature and art collide in the most beautiful ways. Amid this vibrant cultural scene, the Byrdcliffe Guild Gallery anchors the main strip, a reminder of the colony’s historic role in shaping Woodstock as a haven for creative spirits.
Founded in 1902, Byrdcliffe is the oldest continually operating arts and crafts colony in the United States. For generations, it has drawn painters, musicians, writers, photographers, and craftspeople seeking time, space, and community. More than a century later, the colony’s artist residencies continue to nurture exploration and transformation, a legacy still thriving in 2025.
This summer’s August session showcased that enduring power. Painters, printmakers, photographers, ceramicists, and writers worked side by side in shared studios and cottages, some for three weeks, others for two months or more. Together they built not only new bodies of work but also bonds of friendship and artistic exchange.
Tintype photographer Courtney Robertson, now in her second year at Byrdcliffe, described her return as nothing less than life-changing. “Last year was incredibly transformative,” she said. “I changed my whole life just to get back here this summer.” Working with a 19th-century process that produces hauntingly permanent portraits on metal plates, Robertson views her practice as a way to resist the impermanence of digital culture. “Digitals and paper prints won’t be here in 200 years, but these will,” she explained. On weekends, she often set up demonstrations for fellow residents, sharing the mysterious alchemy of silver and light that fuels her craft.
Other artists found Byrdcliffe to be a place of reinvention. Aliene Howell, a longtime printmaker, faced arthritis that made linocut carving painful. Here, she shifted her practice toward cyanotypes, using plants gathered from morning walks to create sun-printed images. “It amazes me how identical our veins are to root structures in nature,” Howell said. “There’s such resonance between the human body and the natural world here.” In Byrdcliffe’s wooded setting, that connection felt especially immediate.
For writer Teri Brown, Byrdcliffe reopened doors she thought were closed forever. Grieving her late husband, she had doubted she would ever write again. “I thought, I’m not going to be able to write. Someone else could be using this spot,” she admitted. “But the collective creative energy here, it was immediate. I started writing again.” Her time in Woodstock produced the first draft of a humorous novel about menopause, inspired by Judy Blume’s Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret. The project grew directly out of the laughter and conversations she shared with fellow residents.
The spirit of experimentation echoed across disciplines. Ceramicist Erin McCreary tested new clays and glazes, embracing risk and imperfection. “I strive to create pottery that feels special,” she said, “functional pieces that also bring joy into everyday routines.” Byrdcliffe’s fully equipped studio allowed her to stretch her practice in new directions without pressure.
Veteran painter Elissa Gore, who has returned to Byrdcliffe nearly every summer for two decades, used her time to step into abstraction after a long career rooted in landscapes. “I give myself the grace here to just experiment and have fun,” she said. For Gore, Byrdcliffe is both retreat and laboratory: “I’m trying to find a visual language in abstraction that’s mine, not imitation. It takes a long time, but here, I can play.”
Emerging artists, too, found their voices strengthened. Kailey Coppens worked with domestic materials to explore themes of home, noting that while the studio time was invaluable, “the biggest value has been meeting people and making connections.” Painter Chris Jehly, who traveled from Asheville, North Carolina, echoed that sentiment. “It’s been a surreal experience,” he said. “Slowly building relationships, getting useful feedback, being surrounded by artists with so many different perspectives, it’s been incredible.”
Even Byrdcliffe’s staff felt the pull of its creative magic. Intern Sam Focone, a recent SUNY Purchase graduate, described how naturally community formed here. “Everyone comes from such different backgrounds, but there’s this shared love of creation that makes being here extraordinary,” he said.
What sets Byrdcliffe apart is not only the solitude and studio space it offers but the way it embodies the larger artistic spirit of Woodstock itself. Just minutes away, the Byrdcliffe Guild Gallery sits on Tinker Street alongside colorful shops, live music venues, and restaurants buzzing with locals and visitors. On any given day, a stroll downtown might take you past contemporary art exhibits, tie-dye boutiques nodding to Woodstock’s countercultural past, and cafés filled with conversations about the latest gallery opening. The town remains a place where creativity thrives in every corner, shaped by both its natural surroundings and its storied history.
That energy feeds back into Byrdcliffe, where artists draw from both the quiet of the mountain colony and the vibrancy of the town below. Some take long walks on wooded trails before returning to their studios; others spend afternoons in town, absorbing the pulse of Woodstock’s eclectic community. The result is a residency that feels simultaneously grounded in nature and alive with cultural exchange.
As Robertson reflected on her second summer, she captured what many residents expressed in their own ways: “Everybody I’ve met here has said the experience changed their life. not just as an artist, but as a person.”
More than a century after its founding, Byrdcliffe continues to offer exactly what artists seek: time, space, and a community that believes in the power of art to transform. Here in Woodstock, where galleries, nostalgia shops, and the lingering echoes of music history line the streets—the Byrdcliffe residency stands as proof that the creative spirit is not just preserved but continually renewed.
The Byrdcliffe Guild Gallery on Tinker Street
At the heart of Woodstock’s buzzing main street sits the Byrdcliffe Guild Gallery, the public face of the historic colony. The gallery features rotating exhibitions of contemporary artists, often including works from current residents, and serves as a bridge between the secluded studios on the mountain and the bustling community downtown.
Visitors can step inside to view paintings, prints, and ceramics, then walk out into a lively scene where the arts are part of everyday life. Across the street, a restaurant may host a live jazz trio; next door, a nostalgia shop sells Woodstock Festival memorabilia; around the corner, another gallery showcases local photography. It’s a reminder that in Woodstock, art is not confined to galleries, it spills into the streets, cafés, and conversations.
The Byrdcliffe Guild Gallery ties that energy back to its roots, honoring a tradition over a century old while giving today’s artists a platform to share their work. For residents who spend weeks creating in quiet studios, the gallery provides a space to connect with audiences and to see their art woven into the broader cultural fabric of Woodstock.
Remember to Subscribe!
0 comments:
Post a Comment