New and Noteworthy

Inhabited Arabesques An Art Installation by James Gonzalez February 25 - October 28, 2023 Our new exhibit at The TAUNY Center is an evolving art installation. TAUNY staff artist James Gonzalez is creating an environment in our main gallery that will continue to develop with the addition of new pieces over the next several months. He’s creating a space where visitors can linger and interact. We bet you'll say “Wow” when you see the first installment! Arabesque is a form of artistic decoration consisting of "surface decorations based on rhythmic linear patterns of scrolling and interlacing foliage, tendrils or plain lines.” James says, “I notice the term arabesque often used for pieces of art that capture my attention. In architecture, for instance, I think of maybe a pierced stonework screen bathed in sun outside, casting a design in graphic stark outline.” James’ signature work is made from recycled materials. "I choose to work with old reused material because this brings its own undeniable character. I much prefer it over the characterlessness of a fresh-from-the-mill sheet of material." This installation is created by James Gonzalez thanks to funding from Creatives Rebuild New York. CRNY is a three-year, $125 million investment in the financial stability of New York State artists and the organizations that employ them. This series of programming was made possible through support from CRNY’s Artist Employment Program (AEP).

Equali-Tea: Suffragist Tea Cozies in Redwork Opening Saturday, March 4th in Upper Gallery at The TAUNY Center Reception with curator Tisha Dolton: Friday, March 10th, 5-7pm Free and open to the public

Join us for needlework, history, and singing at the exhibit opening reception for “Equali-Tea: Suffragist Tea Cozies in Redwork” on March 10th from 5-7 in the Upper Gallery of The TAUNY Center. At 5:30, Tisha Dolton will give a talk about her research and needlework. Tisha is an accomplished singer as well as a historian, and she has agreed to sing some suffrage songs for us! After the talk, you are welcome to stay and drink tea, mingle, ask questions, and enjoy the exhibit, which includes 40 hand-embroidered tea cozies depicting suffragists and accompanying biographies from Tisha Dolton’s research. “As a historian, I began studying the Women's Suffrage Movement and the songs of that movement over twenty years ago. As an artist, I was inspired to put faces to the names I uncovered in meeting notices and articles in local newspapers by creating embroidered portraits of suffragists from New York State. The focus on suffragists with ties to Upstate New York was a conscious choice based on my own research and desire to highlight lesser known people within the movement.” -Tisha Dolton. Tisha Dolton is also offering a redwork embroidery workshop at The TAUNY Center on March 25.       Do you own art you love but have never gotten around to hanging because it’s not framed?  Now is a good time to take care of that! Custom framer Beverly Patchin, Bluebird Gallery, will take appointments at The TAUNY Center the 2nd Wednesday of each month, from 11-3. She’ll meet privately with you in our conference room, where she’ll have all her mat options and most of the frame options for your viewing. March 8 is the first available date. Appointments are necessary.  You can reserve your time slot by calling The TAUNY Center, 315-386-4289.

Featured Folkstore Spotlight Gallery Nancy Orologio Opening March 4th Free and open to the public Nancy Orologio (Norwood, NY) creates beautifully articulated wool felt art by hand to create scenes of flora, fauna and landscapes. At a distance Nancy’s works appear to be paintings; upon closer appreciation the in-depth needlework and wet wool fiber details and color emerge. This spotlight exhibit will feature works for sale along with works from the artist's personal collection. “Perennial flower gardening was my first love. I have many gardens in the North Country. I knew how to sew, paint and quilt for most of my life but I wanted to find something new. I don’t work with pictures, or references, this comes from my mind. The landscapes, the Italian ones especially, are from my personal experiences. I don’t have time to sketch on the wool. Every felter is different though. My flowers have an illusion. “Floral Impressionism” is one of my favorites. I love the color and the pop since it's spring, come fall and fall colors you're going to see that shift with the seasons.” Join us for an opening reception in our Folkstore Spotlight Gallery on Saturday from 12-2 to meet the artist and enjoy refreshments

Sugaring Off Party Saturday, March 25, 2-3:30 People of all ages are invited to a musical celebration of maple sugaring season! This free interactive concert will be presented by The Madstop Fiddlers of Potsdam, a multigenerational group of fiddlers, under the direction of their teacher, Gretchen Koehler.  The Madstop Fiddlers will present a variety of toe-tapping old-time fiddle tunes that have been played in the North County for many generations. Throughout this fun, educational event, listeners will learn to play spoons, hear stories of French Canadian “sugaring off” parties, and learn some Ottawa Valley “step dance” moves.  This event is free, but donations will be gratefully accepted.

Programs at The TAUNY Center in April

Felted Wool Easter Egg Trio Saturday April 1st, 12-3:30pm, $60 The TAUNY Center Explore the use of wool fibers in a fun seasonal workshop with this month’s Spotlight Gallery artist, Nancy Orologio on April 1, 12pm to 3:30pm at The TAUNY Center. Participants will use needle felting to form three Easter eggs from core wool or Corriedale sheep wool and can add Merino sheep wool to decorate and adorn the eggs with foliage, stems, and decorative, colorful flowers (maybe tuck a bee in the design!). A registration fee of $60 includes the use of all necessary tools and materials to make three eggs. Register here online over the phone by calling The TAUNY Center at 315.386.4289 Accessibility: The TAUNY Center is wheelchair accessible. Students will use their hands to manipulate wool using sharp needles. Finger protection will be available. Work can be done seated.

Spinning Time with Fiber Friends Thursday, April 6, 4-6pm (Drop in anytime!), $5 Join us with your spindles or spinning wheels for an informal social gathering to spin, chat, drink tea, and tell stories. Although this is not a formal workshop, Tilly Lind will be available to answer questions and help troubleshoot your technique, fibers, or tools. Some tools will be available for you to use. We will transition to a beginners lesson at 6, but you are welcome to stay on and enjoy spinning in the company of others! Beginners who cannot already make a continuous thread are encouraged to join us for the Beginning Spinning lesson from 6-8pm. Register here online over the phone by calling The TAUNY Center at 315.386.4289

Beginning Spinning I: Fibers and Folklore Thursday April 6, 6-8pm, The TAUNY Center Spinning, the ancient art of twisting fibers to make yarn or thread, still thrives in the North Country, and Tilly Lind is here to show you how to bring its magic into your own creative practice. In this workshop, she will show you how to spin wool using spindles and a spinning wheel, and she will share stories and folklore about spinning while you practice. Hot tea and cookies will be provided for a cozy evening of crafts and storytelling. Registration is required. The registration fee includes the use of spindles and wool in class, and students can take a spindle kit home for an additional $20. Maximum class size is 6 students. Contact tilly@tauny.org for more information. If you are a TAUNY Friend and would like to use your discount to register, either call the Folkstore or email tilly@tauny.org for a special coupon code to use at the checkout when you register online. Accessibility information: The TAUNY Center is a wheelchair-accessible space. Hands-on participants will use simple, low-impact hand movements and lightweight tools to twist washed wool. Work can be done seated or standing. Children are welcome with adult supervision. Register here online over the phone by calling The TAUNY Center at 315.386.4289

Tool Sharpening 101: Pruners Saturday, April 8, 1-2:30 pm., $10 Get ready for gardening season with freshly sharpened pruners! Tam Iverson will show you how to spruce up your tired tools for perfectly clean cuts and user safety. You are welcome to bring your own pruners and sharpeners if you have them. Registration is required. Sharpening tools will be available for in-class use. The workshop will take place at The TAUNY Center in Canton. Accessibility information: The TAUNY Center is a wheelchair-accessible space. Hands-on participants will use repetitive, low-impact hand movements with handheld sharpeners. Work can be done seated or standing. Register here online over the phone by calling The TAUNY Center at 315.386.4289

Hammered Dulcimer Series with Dan Duggan

For many months, the lively sound of the hammered dulcimer has filled The TAUNY Center in Dan Duggan’s monthly workshops. As our winter programming winds down and we look toward spring, we invite all of Dan’s students to an end-of-season celebration of their dedication to learning this beautiful and unusual instrument. On Saturday, April 22nd, we will have a full day of music starting with a Hammered Dulcimer Workshop for Past Beginners (10-11:30; click here to register), then we will hold an informal End-of-Season Hammered Dulcimer Students Celebration (12-1) with refreshments. Anyone who has taken at least one lesson with Dan is invited to attend. Finally, all are welcome (not just dulcimer students!) to a Community Jam and Sing (1-3). Hammered dulcimer workshops will return in September! Until then, keep an eye on TAUNY’s social media to learn about Dan Duggan’s many performances and other events throughout the spring and summer. Hammered Dulcimer Beginner’s II Workshop with Dan Duggan Saturday April 22, 10am, The TAUNY Center, Starting at 10 am The lively sound of the hammered dulcimer has been part of our musical landscape since at least the 18th century, and it still delights players, listeners and dancers alike! We have a very special opportunity to learn how to play this rare instrument from Adirondack musician and CRNY artist Dan Duggan, a nationally touring performer and of the finest dulcimer players and composers in the country. His warm and stress-free teaching style makes his classes a delight, and he will have you comfortably playing the dulcimer in no time! The spring and summer are the busiest times for performing musicians, so our hammered dulcimer workshop series will take a break until September. However, we are offering one more workshop for our past beginners – that is, anyone who has a little experience playing the hammered dulcimer.  Thanks to funding from CRNY, this workshop is offered at the low cost of $10. Register here online over the phone by calling The TAUNY Center at 315.386.4289

End-of-Season Hammered Dulcimer Students Celebration Saturday April 22, 12-1pm, The TAUNY Center Calling all hammered dulcimer students! If you have joined us for at least one hammered dulcimer workshop with Dan Duggan, you are warmly invited to our End-of-Season Celebration! Chat with your fellow students and see our slideshow of images from the 2022-2023 series of workshops. A buffet lunch will be available. This event is free. Registration is not required, but you are encouraged to RSVP by April 19 by emailing tilly@tauny.org or calling (315)386-4289.

Community Jam and Sing Saturday April 22, 1-3pm, The TAUNY Center Do you play an acoustic instrument? Join award-winning Adirondack musicians Dan Duggan and Peggy Lynn for a Community Acoustic Jam and Sing at The TAUNY Center on Saturday April 22nd from 1-3pm. Guitar, banjo, fiddle, mandolin, dulcimer, bass, etc. are all welcome, or just bring your voice and sing along or listen. Join us for an afternoon of singing and music making that will lift your spirits and brighten your day. Registration not required, free and open to the public.

Wool Felt Art Class with Kathy Montan Saturday April 29th, 10am-1pm, the TAUNY Center $65 (includes all necessary felting materials), Limit of 6 registrants In this class you will be making a colorful 8” x 10” wrap-around landscape out of wool. You will learn needle felting techniques and go home with a ready-to-hang finished piece. No felting experience needed. Come and join the fun and creative experience! We will take a half hour lunch break at 11:30, so bring your own lunch or eat in town.   Accessibility information: the TAUNY Center is wheelchair accessible, and all work can be done seated. Participants will use sharp needles and wool and need moderately fine motor skills to carry out the activity. This class is intended for adults. Register here online over the phone by calling The TAUNY Center at 315.386.4289

New Audiences for Old Songs Friday, May 5, 7-8:30pm at TAUNY Center, Canton NY The “New Audiences for Old Songs” project aims to expand awareness for – and enjoyment of – a rare and important collection of folk songs and traditional ballads from the Adirondack region of New York State; the kind of “self-made” music sung by everyday people and passed down through the generations in earlier days. (Yes, that kind of thing happened here in New York State just as it did in KY, NC and TN.) These songs have been kept alive in one family – the Clevelands of Hudson Falls and Brant Lake NY - and the music is little-known today outside a small circle of enthusiasts. The goal of the project is to introduce this material to musicians working in more “mainstream” genres (country, bluegrass, old-time, contemporary folk, even rock and jam bands) so that they in turn can bring the music to their audiences. Musician and teaching artist Dave Ruch and Cleveland family member Colleen Cleveland (fifth-generation singer of these songs) will present a free and open-to-the-public workshop at TAUNY Center on Friday May 5 from 7-8:30pm to introduce this “heritage” music to area musicians and interested others. Come learn about the collection and hear Colleen sing some of her favorites as learned from her grandmother. Immediately after the session, a wide selection of the Cleveland family repertoire will be posted on the project’s webpage for all to access, and participating musicians are then free to work up one or more songs in their own style to be presented at their future performances. Dave will also encourage musicians to submit audio and/or video recordings to be shared with the public via the webpage and partner organizations’ social media accounts. The workshop is open to singers and musicians of all genres including (but certainly not limited to) country, bluegrass, rock, old-time, jam bands, Americana and folk. The general public is more than welcome to attend as well, and registration is not required.

Cabin Fever Concert Series

Beat cabin fever at The TAUNY Center this winter! It’s cold and dark outside, but The TAUNY Center is keeping this winter cozy with lots of fun activities, including a new concert and dance series!  Our winter series of concerts will be at 7pm on the second Friday of each month from January through April. Doors will open at 6:30, and nonalcoholic refreshments will be available. Tickets will be by donation at the door, and all ages are welcome.

Jamie Savage – March 31

Jamie was born and raised in central New York, but it was at a summer camp in the Adirondack Park where he first took a serious interest in an instrument, the banjo. Amidst his busy days as a father, college professor, and community volunteer, Jamie always finds time to make music. He has written well-over one hundred songs—folk, country, rock, blues and contemporary—and published three CDs of original music, not out of necessity, but out of a desire to entertain, amuse, relax, provoke, heal, and inspire anyone and everyone who will listen. His life experiences are rich and his musical influences eclectic, resulting in an ‘Adirondack Style’ that is comfortingly familiar yet intriguingly unique.

Dan Berggren – April 14 Dan Berggren is a tradition-based songsmith who writes with honesty, humor and a strong sense of place. His songs explore the many dimensions of home, hard working folks, and taking care of our planet and each other. An award-winning musician and educator, Dan’s roots are firmly in the Adirondacks where he was raised on land that had been in the family for five generations, but his music has branched out across many borders.

Previous TAUNY Events and Programs in 2023

Wet Felting Workshop Saturday, March 18th 10am to 11:30am at The TAUNY Center $30 (includes all necessary materials) Limit of 6 registrants Come explore the creative possibilities of wet felting using wool and other natural fibers! Sandra Nestlerode-Hale will guide you through the basics of using water, soap, and friction to create felted wool fabric with silk and linen inclusions. No experience necessary! This is a great way to learn the basics of felting, which can be applied later to more complex projects. A $30 registration fee includes all materials and 1.5 hours of instruction. Each student will go home with a felted square and screening that they can use to make more felt at home. Register for TAUNY workshops here Peggy Lynn and Dan Duggan – March 10 Dan Duggan, known nationally for his wizardry on hammered dulcimer and flat-picking guitar, is a true multi-instrumentalist, equally at home on guitar, slide guitar, piano, banjo and his signature hammered dulcimer. Peggy Lynn, referred to by poet Maurice Kenny as "The Voice of the Mountains," is recognized for her soulful songwriting and extraordinary vocal versatility. Dan and Peggy combine original and traditional songs and tunes with masterful harmonies and inventive arrangements. Students from February’s “Nancy Wilder Palmateer Memorial Children’s Workshop: Building a Lap Dulcimer” workshop series will open the night and present a few songs on their newly built lap dulcimers. Dan Duggan and lap dulcimer students at The TAUNY Center. Photography by Gus Geraci Building lap dulcimer workshops with Dan Duggan and Cassie Helman were made possible by the Nancy Wilder Palmateer Memorial Fund. This fund was established by the Palmateer and Wilder families in 2015 to honor the creative side of Nancy Wilder Palmateer, to recognize her work with children, and to encourage hands-on engagement for young people. These workshops are free of charge thanks to the generous support of the Nancy Wilder Palmateer Foundation.  Beginning Spinning II: Consistency and Technique Saturday March 11, 12-2pm, $ 20 In this workshop, Tilly Lind will cover the two main spinning techniques used in the US, worsted and woolen spinning, and students will learn how to draft fibers mindfully for a more consistent yarn. Registration is required. Limit of 6 students. Spindles and a spinning wheel will be available for in-class use. Students can take home a spindle and wool for an additional $20. Register for TAUNY workshops here Beginning Spinning III: Plying and Finishing Yarn Saturday March 11, 2-4pm, $20 Tilly Lind will show students how to ply singles into 2 or 3-ply yarn. She will cover basic methods and ergonomics, and students will also learn about chain plying and finishing yarn. Students are asked to bring spun, unplied yarn either on a spindle, on a bobbin, or wound into a ball. Spindles will be available for use in class, but students are welcome to bring a spinning wheel or their own spindles. Registration is required. Limit of 6 students. Spindles and a spinning wheel will be available for in-class use. Students can take home a spindle and wool for an additional $20. Register for TAUNY workshops here Hammered dulcimer workshops with Dan Duggan Saturday, March 11th March 4th date rescheduled due to weather forecast Beginners: 10–11:30 am and Past Beginners: 11:30 am–1 pm The lively sound of the hammered dulcimer has been part of our musical landscape since at least the 18th century, and it still delights players, listeners and dancers alike! We have a very special opportunity to learn how to play this rare instrument from Adirondack musician and TAUNY staff artist Dan Duggan, a nationally touring musician. His warm and stress-free teaching style makes his classes a delight, and he will have you comfortably playing the dulcimer in no time! Register soon – these workshops sell out fast! Thanks to funding from CRNY, these workshops are offered at the low cost of $10 per session. Register here. This hammered dulcimer series has been organized by Dan Duggan thanks to funding from Creatives Rebuild New York. Creatives Rebuild New York (CRNY) is a three-year, $125 million investment in the financial stability of New York State artists and the organizations that employ them. This series of programming was made possible through support from CRNY’s Artist Employment Program (AEP). Spinning Time with Fiber Friends Thursday March 2, 4–6pm  $5 - Drop in Anytime! The TAUNY Center invites handspinners to join us with their spindles or spinning wheels for an informal social gathering to spin, chat, drink tea, and tell stories. Although this is not a formal workshop, Tilly Lind will be available to answer questions and help troubleshoot techniques, fibers, or tools. Some tools will be available to use. We will transition to a beginners lesson at 6, but participants are welcome to stay on and enjoy spinning in the company of others. Beginners who cannot already make a continuous thread are encouraged to join us for the Beginning Spinning lesson from 6-8. Register for TAUNY workshops here Beginning Spinning I: Fibers and Folklore Thursday March 2, 6-8pm, $20 Spinning, the ancient art of twisting fibers to make yarn or thread, still thrives in the North Country. In this workshop, Tilly Lind will show how to spin wool using spindles and a spinning wheel, and she will share stories and folklore about spinning while you practice. Hot tea and cookies will be provided for a cozy evening of crafts and storytelling. Maximum class size is 6 students. Registration is required. The registration fee includes the use of spindles and wool in class, and students can take a spindle kit home for an additional $20.  Register for TAUNY workshops here

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