Short & sweet

Had a late-night dinner at Terrapin Bistro in Rhinebeck last night ... the grilled Coleman natural beef hangar steak, bistro steak fries and horseradish steak sauce (their own -- tomato-based, I believe) were all delicious!

Cheers!

Cecelia Madden, the owner of Madden's Fine Wines & Spirits at 65 Broadway in Kingston, has invited everyone age 21 and over to a tasting of Whitecliff Vineyard's wines on Friday, August 15, from 5:30 - 7:30 p.m. I toured Whitecliff during a Slow Food Hudson Valley event and I think its products are great. I especially like the Sky Island Red, which Whitecliff describes as "an elegant Bordeaux blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Malbec, and Cabernet Franc is full of body and soft flavorful tannins." Madden's, a beautiful new shop in the city's Rondout waterfront area, carries eight Whitecliff wines. There are also several good restaurants nearby -- this sounds like the recipe for a great night out!

Madden's is also having a tasting of Skyy Cherry Vodka, Skyy Grape Vodka, Smoking Loon Wine, and Hazlitt (New York) Wine from 5-7 p.m. Saturday, August 9. The shop's phone number is 845-340-wine.

Cheers!

Equine enthusiasm

I found good food, good company and interesting art at last evening's Equine Art Gala & Exhibitor Mixer sponsored by Horse Shows in the Sun Saugerties (HITS) and New World Home Cooking Co.

The elite riders are back in our area. Show jumping at HITS Saugerties resumed this past Wednesday after a mid-summer break and there will be three consecutive weeks of competition, with two Grand Prix classes each week this summer. On Thursdays, the $25,000 Ariat Grand Prix will take center stage and on Sundays, riders will compete in the $50,000 Grand Prix. Every Grand Prix at HITS Saugerties is a qualifier for the $100,000 USGPL Invitational, which will take place at HITS Culpeper (in Virginia) on September 28.

The USEF Junior Hunter National Championship for the East Coast will return to HITS Saugerties on August 5 and 6. And the $10,000 USHJA International Hunter Derby and its all-new $5,000 Pony Commotion take place on Thursday, August 8 during Week VI. On August 10, HITS presents World of the Horse, with numerous equine breeds represented in a parade along with special exhibitions and demos. The HITS Web site has information on times and admission.

The Equine Art exhibition last night featured quite a few artists from the Hudson Valley. Well worth checking out their work ... here are their bios (as provided by HITS):

Gretchen Almay is one of nine new artists participating in this year's Art Gala. Almay, of Middleborough, Massachusetts, is an accomplished equine and canine portrait artist with collectors across the United States. Her specialty is highly detailed graphite portraits and oils that capture the animals' unique personalities. Originally from Connecticut, she spent her summers at the family farm, in Westport, Massachusetts. Learning to ride at five, what her parents had hoped was just a childhood hobby turned into a lifetime passion and vocation. She still continues her love of riding on her Thoroughbred, Skye. Almay has a BA in Fine Arts from Randolph-Macon Woman's College in Lynchburg, Virginia. Through her company, Gretchen Almay Designs, she produces commissioned portraits in graphite, oil, digital color renditions and photography as well as a custom gift line.

Mary Bridgman, www.marybridgman.com, is one of four returning artists to this year's event. Employing painting, drawing and photography, Bridgman’s work draws upon a broad range of cultural influences from Renaissance paintings to Modern approaches to traditional artistic subject matter. Bridgman’s equestrian paintings represent her long term relationship with the horse, both as creative inspiration and her favored form of transportation. Her work has been included in exhibitions in New York City, the Hudson Valley, Kentucky, Colorado and Virginia. Bridgman, on the faculty at the Parsons School of Design and the Fashion Institute of Technology, freelances as a designer in the fashion industry and resides in Manhattan.

Jean Campbell of Saugerties, New York is another fresh face to this year's line up. Campbell’s work reveals a love of materials and drawing, with the added dimension of words, to add detail and an often humorous look at the world we live in. Over the years, she has developed a separate, more commercially viable business of doing animal portraits, particularly dogs, cats and horses. Her folk art style captures the essence of the pet, while the words enhance and personalize the painting. She enjoys working with the clients and getting to be privy to their relationships with their animals. She sells these portraits locally as well as in Connecticut, Westchester, Manhattan and Martha’s Vineyard. Although most of her work is in acrylic on irregularly cut wood with a painted border, Campbell has also brought her inimitable style to printmaking, sculpture, encaustics and ceramics. Most recently, she discovered the beauty of watercolor painting while working on an on-site mural on Martha's Vineyard this past spring. She now has integrated this medium into her milieu with much success.

Maria D'Angelo, www.mariadangelo.com, like many artists, believes there's something so beautiful and magical about the horse. Growing up in Staten Island, New York, she never had the opportunity to own one of these magnificent creatures. Capturing them on paper, she says, made her feel closer to them. D'Angelo studied art in college, but attributes her skills to natural ability and self-teaching rather than formal education. She has spent many hours watching horses, learning how they move and understanding their muscular structure. Learning every tiny detail, including veins in their faces and whiskers on their muzzles, is fundamentally important to her as an artist. Graphite is the medium of choice for D'Angelo, due to the amount of control a pencil provides. Recently she has begun exploring the utility of colored pencils. Aside from horses, D'Angelo also does portraits of dogs, cats and children. She also enjoys using her work to help raise money for different animal-related charities.


Phyllis Frazier, www.pfrazier.com, joins the exhibit from New York City and was selected as this year's HITS Saugerties Official Program Cover Artist. Frazier's paintings reflect her lifelong interest in both art, nature and the animal world. In addition to receiving a Bachelor of Science in Studio Art from New York University, she has studied with noted wildlife photographers (to learn how to take her own animal references for study), natural history filmmakers, wildlife conservationists, artists and animal trackers (to understand animals in their own environments, from movement to camouflage). Mesmerized by the complexity of forms in the animal world, she explores the infinite variety of textures, shapes, and colors of feathers, skin, and fur. With oil as her primary medium, she endeavors to not only accurately portray the animal’s physical appearance, but also to reach an inner quality—the essence of the individual—its inner life.

Jean Haines , www.littleshopofhorses.com, is a native of Kingston, New York, and has studied, drawn, painted, photographed and sculpted horses since earliest memory. Since 1995, she has been Assistant Manager of the Coffey Gallery in Kingston and an active volunteer for A.S.K. (Arts Society of Kingston). In 1996, she became a member of the Horse Artists Association (HAA), based in Tucson, Arizona. Haines' work has a unique linear, colorful, swirly semi-abstractness, sometimes resembling stained glass. She works purely from imagination, made possible by a lifelong observation of horses. Her main medium is oil on canvas or paper, but also drawing, clay sculpture, and photography.

Juliet Harrison www.lechevalthehorse.com,
is one of three photographers in this year's exhibit and is a resident of Red Hook, New York. Harrison was given her first 35mm camera for her college graduation. From that point on, she saw herself in the images caught in the viewfinder. Living in New York City in the late 1980’s, Harrison spent a great deal of time photographing the buildings around her, becoming absorbed in the textures, light and geometry of the city. She photographed the peeling paint, the shadows of fire escapes, the edges and corners. Harrison works in 35mm, color and black & white and was greatly influenced by the works of modernist photographers, painters and sculptors. After receiving a Master’s Degree in Photography from Cranbrook Academy of Art in Michigan, Harrison honed her skills and learned to speak with her camera. And it is also there that she started a fledgling interest in photographing horses.

Lenny Marks, www.lenmarksequine.com, is also a photographer who, after 19 years as a wedding and portrait photographer, turned his photographer's eye towards his passion, horses. His passion for these animals has been the inspiration for several trips to remote parts of the west to photograph horses in the wild. As a result, he has produced magnificent works of art that have generated several gallery shows including his own "Mustangs". Not only does Marks photograph mustangs, he has been commissioned to photograph and create works of art for private owners throughout the New York, New Jersey and Connecticut area and has traveled as far as Colorado. His award-winning photograph "Cold Morning Run" has won first place at the WPPI National Competition and fourth from the Equine Photographers Network, also a national competition. He is from Cold Spring Harbor, New York.

Deborah O'Sullivan, www.artofthehorse.net, utilizes her 35 years of experience in the horse industry to create equine art that appeals not only to the collector but to the horseperson. Her years of dedicated work as a trainer and rider and, always, student of the horse has given her an extensive working knowledge of rider and equine biomechanics, movement, behavior and anatomy. O'Sullivan has had a lifelong passion for horses and strives to engage the viewer with use of bold and vibrant color, brush strokes and an eye to correctness of equine biomechanics, anatomy and detail. Her passion for the horse is evident in her ability to capture the essence of the horse in her portrayal of this timeless subject. She is from Pawling, New York.

Karen Ruoff's 15-year career as an artist follows closely a lifelong passion for working with horses. Ruoff attended the Equestrian Studies Program at Lake Erie College in Ohio where she began her serious exploration of fine art. That exploration continued at the Cleveland Institute of Art and flourished at Louisiana State University's College of Design, culminating in a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Painting and Drawing. Ruoff's work is inspired by a love of horses and the silent communication that can happen between animals and humans. She aims to capture some sense of that experience: a moment, a look, an expression or mood, and enhance it through her own vision, use of color, light and composition. Watercolor is Ruoff's medium of choice these days. She enjoys incorporating other elements such as colored pencil, glitter, glass beads and more. The finished product is often a mystical mix of brightly colored horses in highly stylized and textured landscapes. She is from New Paltz, New York.

JoAnne Sullam, www.daydreamsinnature.com,
has been producing quality artwork for more than 15 years. Having worked closely with horses and the equestrian community, Sullam has extensive knowledge of horse anatomy, behavior, and personality that she learned by going to horse shows and following her long time friend, a horse vet, making her rounds. Last year the artist set up on the show grounds of HITS to sculpt, completing her latest bronze "The Prophet" so named after the artist was told a story of an imprint of the angels thumb on the horse, which brings the riders luck. Her award-winning wildlife paintings and sculptures are a result of years of up-close study. Sullam offers fine equestrian art that ranges from highly detailed to loosely surreal and dreamlike. She is from Saugerties, New York.

Kristen Vetterl, www.kristenvetterl.com, another returning artist, resides in Manasquan, New Jersey. At a young age she showed an artistic talent and an obsession for horses. After receiving her Bachelors of Fine Arts with a concentration in painting, lithography, and graphic arts in 2007 from The University of Rhode Island, she moved back home and continued to do the two things that inspire her most, ride horses and paint them. Her medium of choice is lithography, but she continues to paint in her second favorite medium, oils. Vetterl has become distinguished for her vivid use of color and expression in her equestrian artwork. She paints the horse world in a style very different from classical portraiture. Her lithographs, too, capture the same vivid imagination and expression with line, creating movement and contrast in black and white.

Barbara Widmann, www.barbarawidmann.com, grew up watching her grandfather paint his large, vivid, expressive, contemporary oil paintings, and was influenced to paint and draw at an early age. Fueled by the joy of creating, Widmann was enriched by art classes in school, and was recognized with many awards. Her artistic path took her from expressing her art through graphic arts, to architectural illustration and design, to equine art and portraiture. While she paints mostly with watercolor and her subject is mostly equine, Widmann is also skilled with acrylic paints, pastels, charcoal, pen and ink, graphite pencil and color pencil. As a horsewoman, and a local artist in upstate New York, Widmann grew up around horses and at an early age developed a sense of the equestrian form, movement and spirit. Combining her artistic talent and admiration for horses, she reveals the beauty of horses in art. Although there are many subjects that inspire Widmann, it has always been the horse that takes center stage in her mind, and in her paintings. She is from East Greenbush, New York.

A highlight for me was New World chef-owner Ric Orlando's special Zephyr Gin-Cucumber Lemonade, which was refreshing and perfectly complemented his spicy ethnic-inspired fare -- especially the chef's famed pan-blackened string beans. You should see the lines of folks waiting to buy the beans every year at his booth at the Saugerties Garlic Festival ...

So many choices

reminder -- two great food & wine festivals coming up this weekend in our area:

Two days celebrating Hudson Valley wines at the Shawangunk Wine Trail’s Bounty of the Hudson Food and Wine Festival July 26 & 27. The host is Benmarl Winery in Marlboro, which is up on a hill with lovely views overlooking the Hudson River and is known as “home to America’s oldest vineyard.” Read more ...

and

Meet the chefs and farmers at Columbia County Bounty’s first “Taste of Columbia County Bounty” takes place on Monday, July 28, from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Columbia County Fairgrounds in Chatham. This first-ever fundraiser brings together the finest chefs, growers, farmers, producers and processors from Columbia County and the Hudson Valley for a summer’s evening of great food featuring the finest local products. Read more ...

PLUS tonight is Thursday, which means that it is barbecue-and-live-music night at The Garrison ... Read more ...
And Saturday is the Rhinebeck Antiques Fair Summer Magic show

So much to do .....

Hudson Valley locavore heaven

Had a fantastic visit to the Rhinebeck Farmers Market on Sunday, which had some nice music and its always-fab vendors. It was THE place to be on Sunday – I even ran into one of my colleagues, Barb (the Dish 'n' That blogger).

Best of all, I picked up the ingredients to make a quick, easy, delicious and LOCAL meal back home. Our supper that day consisted of bison burgers from Highland Farms in Germantown, garlic sautéed green beans and garlic-roasted potatoes from Brittany Hollow Farm in Rhinebeck, and rustic Italian bread from Our Daily Bread in Chatham. For dessert, we went over to Leonardo’s Italian Market (located in the little plaza on East Market Street near the farmers market) and picked up a cannoli to share – heavenly and it’s not SO decadent if we all share it!

The entire meal cost less than $20 (sans wine) and was enough to feed four. I had leftover beans and potatoes to make a great salade niçoise to enjoy the next day. By the way, Taliaferro Farms of New Paltz was selling its first new garlic of the season.

There are so many benefits to being a locavore (one who looks first to buying locally produced food) -- it helps the regional economy and the environment, the farmers who we want to help stay in business, and us, because I think the the food just tastes better.

Mass gas benefits

Here's incentive to take that New England vacation this summer -- Tanglewood, Gulf Oil, and the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority have teamed up for a promotion at Gulf gas stations along the Massachusetts Turnpike between Boston and Tanglewood. For every $50 of gas purchased at participating Gulf gas stations, travelers can earn a free lawn pass to Tanglewood, the summer home of the Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO). The promotion will run through August 22.

Wow! Does anyone know of any similar promotions in the Hudson Valley?

Here is more of what Tanglewood's media reps say about the promotion:

To redeem lawn passes, travelers need only to bring in their receipts to one of the eleven participating Gulf station stores along the Mass Pike. Each lawn pass permits one person to a regularly priced Shed or Ozawa Hall concert at Tanglewood. With the recent rise in gas prices, nearby residents can collect enough tickets to spend a cost-effective weekend enjoying the music at Tanglewood. The eleven gas stations participating in the promotion are located in Lee, Blandford, Ludlow, Charlton, and Natick eastbound, and in Lee, Blandford, Ludlow, Charlton, Westborough and Framingham westbound along the Mass Pike.

The lawn passes can be used for concerts taking place up to August 24. Blackout dates include Boston Pops (July 8 and July 26), cellist Yo-Yo Ma (August 3), Wilco (August 12), and the Jazz Festival (August 29, 30 and 31).

Highlights from the Tanglewood 2008 season include violinists Midori (July 19) and Joshua Bell (August 1) and the family-friendly Tanglewood on Parade on August 5, featuring maestros Keith Lockhart (a Dutchess County native!) and John Williams, Sir Andrew Davis, and André Previn, but not James Levine.

As I assume everyone has heard by now, Levine (BSO's music director) had to withdraw recently from the balance of the 2008 Tanglewood season to undergo surgery to have a kidney removed. His anticipated recuperation period is six weeks -- leaving time to prepare and conduct the season openings of the BSO and the Metropolitan Opera in September.

UPDATE JULY 22: More about James Levine's condition from the Boston Symphony Orchestra:

Boston Symphony Orchestra Managing Director, Mark Volpe, reported today that its Music Director, James Levine, was released from the hospital this past weekend. According to Mr. Volpe, Maestro Levine was hospitalized on Tuesday, July 15, for surgery to remove a growth in his kidney. Tom Levine, James Levine's brother, reported to Mr. Volpe that doctors "found the growth to be malignant, but it was very small and confined to the central area of his right kidney, which was then removed. Fortunately, as the growth was discovered early enough, it had not spread to the surrounding tissues, blood vessels, or lymph nodes. Doctors reported the surgery was completely curative and no further treatment is necessary." Tom Levine also stated that his brother was very relieved by the doctors' report, is in very good spirits recuperating at home, and looks forward to conducting the opening events of the 2008/2009 seasons of the Boston Symphony Orchestra and the Metropolitan Opera in September. Maestro Levine is Music Director of both institutions.

Tasting Columbia’s Bounty

The food festivals are popping up all over. Here is a great way to explore our region by dining on the bounty of Columbia County all in one place -- from 20+ local restaurants, caterers and chefs, 30+ local farms, plus local beer and wines. Meet the chefs and farmers! Columbia County Bounty’s first “Taste of Columbia County Bounty” takes place on Monday, July 28, from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Columbia County Fairgrounds in Chatham. This first-ever fundraiser brings together the finest chefs, growers, farmers, producers and processors from Columbia County and the Hudson Valley for a summer’s evening of great food featuring the finest local products.

This event is an outgrowth of the all-volunteer Columbia County Bounty’s phenomenally successful “Bounty of the County” suppers, which started as harvest dinners to allow chefs and restaurateurs to cook and create dishes using local ingredients from the bounty of local farmers and producers. This year the group is opening the event to the general public to raise funds for the non-profit advocacy, educational and networking programs of Columbia County Bounty.

Here is more info from the organizers. Some great food names are included in here:

Imagine enjoying ice cream from the cream from Gumaer Farms, south-of-the-border delights from Mexican Radio, artisan garlic from Scarecrow Farm, delicious preserves and chutneys from Beth’s Farm Kitchen, regional delicacies from Chef Jeff Loshinsky, gorgeous, expertly prepared farm produce from Braeburn Farm and the Farm at Miller’s Crossing, creative dishes from Bezalel Gables Fine Catering & Events, tasty Tuscan-inspired food from Vico Restaurant, Black Angus beef from Grazin’ Angus Acres, plus sample fare from some of our newest restaurants and chefs. For special treats, don’t forget the popcorn with local butter, fresh-spun cotton candy, a 3 1⁄2 foot fountain of chocolate featuring local berries for dipping, free balloons, and much more!

Enjoy live music, including the jazz stylings of the Peg Delaney Trio. Floral designs using locally grown flowers and plants from Stem Life by Stephen Bruce Design – floral designer for this year’s Lincoln Center Film Society Tribute to Meryl Streep and floral designer for Vera Wang.

Come and taste the best of the county, featuring locally grown and produced products paired to some of our local star chefs. It’s a “must” for foodies, passionate cooks, and home gardeners!

Tickets are $75, which includes a $25 one-year membership in Columbia County Bounty. Tickets are $50 for folks who are already Columbia County Bounty members. Tickets for children 1 to 6 years old are free and for children 7 to 12 years old are $25. Call Columbia County Chamber of Commerce at 518-828-4417 for tickets, or purchase tickets at the door (cash or credit cards only at the door).

Columbia County Bounty sponsors are: Columbia County Chamber of Commerce; Hudson Valley AgriBusiness Development Corporation; Cornell Cooperative Extension of Columbia County; Columbia County Tourism Department; Columbia County Board of Supervisors.

Art from the heart

Jennifer Axinn-Weiss, the Rhinebeck artist who creates the Gourmet Giggles cartoon in Hudson Valley Connoisseur magazine, has been busy working on two shows this summer.

If you’re up in the Brattleboro, Vermont area this month or until the end of August, be sure to check out her exhibit, "Intermediaries For Mobilization" at the Gallery in the Woods … looks like some great stuff.

Jen’s work will also be on display at the Kubiak Gallery at Wilber Mansion, home of the Upper Catskill Community Council of the Arts in Oneonta. The exhibit is called "Homage To Home" and runs from August 22 through September 20.

“I paint beings who I have delegated as intermediaries between worlds, and I imbue them with magical abilities, to protect and translate forces of the natural world. They provide me with an antidote for this time, fighting the forces conspired to immobilize, helping to mobilize power,” she says. I love the colors she uses and the emotions her art evokes. If you get the opportunity – check them out for yourself!

Sublime Thursday nights

Thursday night barbecue and music on the lawn are back at The Garrison for six more weeks this summer! Wow – although it's a bit of a drive for me, I am going to try very hard to get to this some time this summer, because The Garrison has a couple of great chefs and one of the most beautiful views in the Hudson Valley. (It also has an awesome golf course and the incredible Valley Restaurant.)

On Thursdays through August 21, you can enjoy an alfresco barbecue under the stars along with an evening of live music. A barbecue buffet will be served from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., with barbecued chicken, brisket and ribs, all the delicious trimmings, and desserts such as just-baked blueberry cobbler. A cash bar is available for beverages. Music begins at 7 p.m.

It all costs $25 per person for food and music, and $12 for children age 12 and under. No admission charge for children age 2 and younger. You can also come after 8 p.m. to enjoy just the music and dancing and skip the barbecue (I don’t know why anyone would …) for a $10 cover charge. Neat, informal summer attire is requested (shorts are OK).

To purchase tickets, please call 845-424-3604 x 27 or email martiajello@thegarrison.com. Garrison is located at Route 9 and Snake Hill Road in Garrison. For directions, visit www.thegarrison.com.

Thursday Barbecue and Music Schedule
July 17th: Soulsystem Orchestras Presents: DEAN SCALA BAND
July 24th: Soulsystem Orchestras Presents: SOUL II
July 31st: Soulsystem Orchestras Presents: HOT ROD BAND
August 7th: Soulsystem Orchestras Presents: BRIAN TICE BAND
August 14th: NEW YORK CITY SWING
August 21st: Soulsystem Orchestras Presents: SOULSYSTEM

Cheers along the Hudson!

Get ready for two days celebrating Hudson Valley wines at the Shawangunk Wine Trail’s Bounty of the Hudson Food and Wine Festival July 26 & 27. The host is Benmarl Winery in Marlboro, which is up on a hill with lovely views overlooking the Hudson River and is known as “home to America’s oldest vineyard.”

According to its organizers, this event is the largest festival that features only Hudson Valley wines. There will also be great food, fresh local produce, and live music by The Bernstein Bard Quartet on Saturday and Andrew Holtz on Sunday.

Here is more info:

Wines being tasted this year come from the banner crop that was achieved during the 2007 growing season. The 2007 growing season was the best growing season the Hudson Valley vineyards have seen in many years. Visitors will enjoy side-by side tastings of the region’s array of wines. Dry, complex, locally grown Seyval, Chardonnay or Pinot Noir, to sweeter apple and strawberry wines. This is the best opportunity to experience the range and quality now achieved by the wines of Hudson River Region.

Event tickets are $25 plus tax in advance and $35 at the door. Event hours are noon to 5 p.m. each day. This year there will be transfers available from the Poughkeepsie Metro North Station, with bus service between the train station and the festival on the following schedule: Will meet arriving trains at 12:37, 1:38 and 2:38 p.m.; Will depart festival at 4 and 5 p.m. to catch the 4:31 and 5:31 trains back to NYC. Transfer cost is $10 round trip and must be purchased in advance.

Directions and more information are at www.gunkswine.com

Shawangunk Wine Trail members include: Adair Vineyards & Rivendell Winery, New Paltz NY; Whitecliff Vineyards, Gardiner NY; Benmarl Vineyards, Glorie Farm Winery & Stoutridge Winery, Marlboro NY; Baldwin Vineyards, Pine Bush NY; Brotherhood Winery, Washingtonville NY; Applewood Winery & Warwick Valley Winery & Distillery, Warwick NY.

New work as Beacon gallery celebrates

RiverWinds Gallery at 172 Main Street in Beacon is celebrating its first five years in business by showing new work by its three owners – painter E. Virginia Donovan, and photographers Mary Ann Glass & Linda T. Hubbard. The gallery is open on Wednesdays through Mondays, from noon to 6 p.m. The exhibit runs until August 4. Above, Sunset Cedars, oil by E. Virginia Donovan.

Here is more about each of the owner/artists:

Known best for her Hudson River scenes, Linda Hubbard is taking the opportunity to highlight her love of water in images that range around the globe, from the Hudson River to Cape Cod to New Zealand, Australia and England. Whether on land, by boat or leaning out of a helicopter, Linda has a zest for capturing the many changing colors and moods of the places where land meets water.

For Mary Ann Glass, when she lived in New York City, Coney Island was her beach of choice. She would ride the subway to the end of the line, bringing along with her towel & sunscreen, her camera with black and white infrared film. She was intrigued by the juxtaposition of this classic all-American scene with the dark European imagery on many of the rides that seemed inspired by Hieronymus Bosch and old circus sideshow themes. All this has disappeared, replaced by cartoon and animation signage, so this portfolio celebrates what used to be and is no longer.

E. Virginia Donovan continues her investigation of light and shadow in oil with her evocative, moody landscapes. “I find painting to be a great enhancement to my life,” she says. “It can be consuming yet freeing, somewhat relaxing and even sometimes frustrating. But in the process, everything else becomes distant and I can be totally inside the painting. This happens whether I am painting en plein air or in studio. Sometimes the colors get me excited; sometimes the shapes and occasionally, as in Sunset Cedars, both. I feel truly blessed that I have found this path of growth and fulfillment in my life.”

Kit rocks!

Along with Jess the American Girl doll and the dog Coconut (in photo), we attended the American Girl Kit Kittredge movie on Wednesday (its national opening and the first day playing in our region.) The theater (Red Hook Lyceum) was FULL of other moms and daughters (and the occasional dad and brother.) And I'd say about two-thirds of the girls had brought along their American Girl Dolls.

I've written before about my appreciation for American Girl (with which I have a very slight connection, in that its founder and I share an alma mater.) I have to say that I've become a fan of the brand -- even though it's somewhat pricey, it does offer up thoughtful and high-quality entertainment for girls to counter the Miley, Bratz and Jamie Lynn-mania.

And finally, with Kit there is a movie this summer that is appropriate for a 9YO girl AND entertaining at the same time! We need more girl characters in entertainment like this, who can be strong and true to their beliefs without having to be written into the plot as eccentric or social outcasts. And I loved that the plot revolved around 10-year-old Kit's desire to not only work towards her dream of being a journalist but also to use her writing/reporting talent for social good.

The plot centers on how Kit's suddenly-no-longer-upper-middle-class family and her neighbors struggle to make ends meet during the Depression and about how easy it is to scapegoat one group of people when times are tough. Homes are being foreclosed on and fathers are losing their jobs.

There are elements in the story that can be used to talk to your kids about our Hudson Valley history as well as past (and current) events -- Kit admires Eleanor Roosevelt (and has her photo in her clubhouse). There's discussion about FDR's New Deal and the Civilian Conservation Corps. And one of the characters is from Poughkeepsie!

Champagne and classical guitar

A suggestion if you're looking for something fun to do this weekend, from the Emerson Resort & Spa in Mount Tremper:

The Phoenix Restaurant at the Emerson Resort and Spa will present classical guitarist and composer David Temple for a concert and champagne reception in its Great Room on Sunday, June 29. Temple’s performance, from 5 p.m. – 7 p.m., is open to both overnight guests and local residents. The $20 concert fee includes a champagne reception. Concert-goers who enjoy dinner at the Phoenix after the concert will have the price of their concert ticket deducted from the cost of their entrée. Advance reservations are suggested. 845-688-2828.

And I see in the Hudson Valley Connoisseur Guide to Events that the same artist -- David Temple -- will be performing Brazilian Aire: A Concert for the Classical Guitar at 8 p.m. on Wednesday July 2 at in Rhinebeck Center for Performing Arts. Compositions will include those by Villa-Lobos, Reis, Morel, Bonfa and more. Tickets are $18 for adults and $16 for seniors and children. Visit the Web site or call 845-876-3080 for ticket information.

New pastry chef at Gigi

The Gigi Trattoria in Rhinebeck and Gigi Market in Red Hook has a new pastry chef with local roots. Ashley Kearns joined Gigi a month ago.

Here is her bio:

Ashley grew up in Poughkeepsie where she fell in love with baking at the age of ten; working alongside her grandmother and mother she baked pies, cakes and cookies for the neighborhood. At 16 she approached Barnes and Noble with the idea of making gelato for the cafe and quickly found herself making many flavors such as lemon, wild berry and chocolate hazelnut. After graduating from the Culinary Institute of America, she did an externship at Terrapin in Rhinebeck where she met Gigi Executive Chef Wilson Costa. Ashley also worked at the CIA's Apple Pie Cafe assisting in teaching adult baking classes, Taste Budds as a customer service supervisor and front of the house manager at Nordstrom Cafe in Pennsylvania.

OK, don't drool on your keyboard -- here is a sample list of Gigi desserts at the market: Brownies, Biscotti, Cookies, Muffins, Scones, Quiche, Tiramisu, Gigi Cupcakes, Seasonal Fruit Pies, Sliced Pound Cakes, Mini Seasonal Fruit Gallettes, Gigi Home Made Ice Creams & Sorbets, Seasonal Individual Cheesecakes, and Seasonal Bars: Lemon, Chocolate Coconut, & Strawberry Mascarpone. A seasonal selection of some of Ashley's new dessert items offered at Gigi Trattoria include Gooseberry Tart, Lemon Semolina Cake, and Lemon Cheesecake with Blueberry compote.

Ashley's desserts will be part of the patio barbecues offered at Gigi Market (located on the Greig Farm on Pitcher Lane) from noon to 4 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays during these weekends: June 28 & 29; August 30 & 31; and September 14 & 15. Eat indoors, in the air-conditioned café, or outdoors on the pet-friendly patio. (I better not tell my dogs -- if they went along, I'd never get them to come home again!)

The menu includes entrees ($7.50 each plus tax) such as Barbequed Pork Ribs, Barbequed Northwind Farm Chicken, Grilled Northwind Farm Kielbasa, and Local Beef Burgers. Side dishes ($3 each/two for $5/three for $7 plus tax) include Gigi Potato Salad, Confetti Cole Slaw, Mediterranean Pasta Salad and Tomato-Cucumber Salad. To go full circle, there's the BBQ dessert menu ($2.50 each plus tax) which includes Bakery Cookies, Gigi Cupcakes and Gigi Ice Cream.

Did I say "yum" yet?

Bus to Balanchine

The latest issue of Hudson Valley Connoisseur magazine spotlights 12 top summer festivals in our region, including the New York City Ballet’s annual appearance at the Saratoga Performing Arts Center.

I just learned that Unison Arts Center in New Paltz is sponsoring a bus trip on Saturday, July 12 to the "All Balanchine" performance of the NYC Ballet at SPAC. The trip costs $118 and includes luxury coach travel, all gratuities, champagne breakfast en route, an hour to explore the charming town of Saratoga, buffet lunch in the grand "Hall of Springs" restaurant, excellent seats for the ballet performance, and a box dinner with wine on the return trip.

The program includes three Balanchine works: Mozartiana, Prodigal Son and Symphony in C. Balanchine, one of the leading ballet choreographers of the 20th century, was co-founder of the New York City Ballet.

The bus leaves at 9:15 a.m. from the Hannaford's parking lot in Kingston Plaza. The bus will return to Kingston at approximately 7 p.m.

Call Linda Gold at 845-255-5256 or email ArtladyLG@aol.com to register and give your box dinner sandwich selection for the return trip. Make your check payable to Unison Arts and mail it to: 68 Mountain Rest Road, New Paltz, NY 12561. Organizers say that there is always a full bus for this wonderful trip, so reserve early to ensure a spot.

Happy Birthday Maestro!

You have to be pretty darn special to have a podcast about your life aired on your birthday ...

Well, Boston Symphony Orchestra’s Music Director James Levine is 65 years old today and to celebrate, the orchestra is offering a special online program celebrating the Maestro's life in music. To access today's free podcast, visit www.bso.org and click on the RSS podcast link on the left.

According to the BSO:

The podcast will feature historic pictures chronicling James Levine's extensive history within classical music, from his time as a young piano prodigy to his appointment as BSO Music Director, as well as music from his tenure with the BSO, including the Grammy Award winning Album with Lorraine Hunt, Peter Lieberson's "Neruda Songs."

James Levine became 14th Music Director and the first American-born conductor of the Boston Symphony Orchestra in the fall of 2004. In addition to his concerts with the BSO at Symphony Hall, at Tanglewood, and on tour, he appears as a collaborative pianist in recitals and chamber music, and leads classes devoted to orchestral repertoire, Lieder, and opera with the Instrumental, Vocal, and Conducting Fellows of the Tanglewood Music Center, the BSO's summer training program for young musicians.

His wide-ranging programs balance orchestral, operatic, and choral classics with significant music of the 20th and 21st centuries, including newly commissioned works from such leading American composers as Milton Babbitt, Elliott Carter, John Harbison, Leon Kirchner, Peter Lieberson, Gunther Schuller, and Charles Wuorinen. James Levine is also Music Director of the Metropolitan Opera, where, to date, he has led nearly 2,500 performances- more than any other conductor in the company's history - of 83 different operas, including thirteen company premieres.

The BSO and the maestro begin their 2008 Tanglewood season on July 5th. Highlights of the summer will include Berlioz's Les Troyens in concert with the Boston Symphony Orchestra; Tchaikovsky's Eugene Onegin in concert with the Tanglewood Music Center Orchestra; a fully staged Tanglewood Music Center production of Weill's Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny; a BSO concert of Elliott Carter's music as part of this summer's Festival of Contemporary Music marking the composer's 100th-birthday year, and John Harbison's new Symphony No. 5 with the BSO, as well as BSO performances of works by Bach, Brahms, Haydn, Mahler, Mozart, and Schubert.

Tanglewood has to be one of the most beautiful music venues I've ever visited. It's easily accessible from the Hudson Valley. I highly recommend it for a summer concert experience!

It just popped up!

I have some great memories of camping trips when I was younger, in particular those taken in a pop-up tow camper in Europe. It's an experience I would love to share with my daughter (especially since a camping vacation would mean we could bring along our dogs.)

So I have been thinking about getting a pop-up tow camper for a long time, but never bought one for a number of reasons. Reason #1 being that I have allergies and am worried about buying something that has the potential to get musty in our humid summers. (That was the big issue I'd seen with the used pop-ups I have looked at in the past.)

Then I saw this Sylvan Sport Go camper on display during a recent festival at Hunter Mountain. I love it! Kenco, that great shop for all things outdoors on Route 28 just outside Kingston, had it on display and sells it from their store. It was roomy, and appeared to be light to tow and easy to set up and best of all, it doesn't look like there is a lot there that can get musty!

I'm not saying I have made the decision yet to buy this camper -- but it has popped to the front of my list!

The officially sexy chef

New York City's sexiest chef was the graduation speaker at the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park on lucky June 13th. Really, he holds the official title! Johnny Iuzzini, a Hudson Valley native and the executive pastry chef at the swanky Restaurant Jean-Georges in New York City, was selected by readers of the New York Daily News earlier this year as the Sexiest Chef in New York City. He creates incredible desserts. He has 24/7 access to the world's best chocolate. How could he not be attractive?

The 33-year-old grew up near Newburgh and is a 1994 CIA graduate. I've written before about the marshmallow-coated chef (you'll have to read my old blog posts.)

Although he's drawn media attention in the past for his prankster personality, Iuzzini also has been lauded by the foodservice industry for his work. Named as one of Forbes magazine's 10 Most Influential Chefs in 2007, he also won the James Beard Foundation Award for Outstanding Pastry Chef in 2006, and was twice named among Pastry Art & Design's Top 10 Pastry Chefs. He's worked with some of today's most famous chefs and pastry chefs, including Jean-Georges Vongerichten, Francois Payard, and Daniel Boulud. As a teen, he worked at the River Café in Brooklyn, before coming to the CIA.

I wonder if any of the new CIA grads asked him if he likes marshmallows?

Pig roast in the Catskills

Somehow the image of a "pig roast" doesn't quite mesh with my recollection of the elegant Emerson Resort but that's exactly what is going on there Friday evening, in its Catamount banquet center.

I guess they know what works. If any place could make a pig roast upscale, they can. As their Web site says, the Catamount has "sweeping mountain views and exceptional dining. Set along the famed Esopus Creek that runs throughout the Hudson Valley, the Catamount features an open, airy dining space with a panoramic deck and spectacular white-tented pavilion."

The fun starts at 6 p.m. and runs until 9 p.m., with $25 admission for adults and $12.50 for children under age 12. (Children under 5 eat for free.) The event also includes "hamburgers, hot dogs and all the fixin's!" and a cash bar.

The Emerson is located at 5368 Route 28 in Mount Tremper, west of Woodstock. Call 845-688-2828 for reservations.

Beautiful lamps!

A lamp is such a small item in home decor but one that can really set off a room. I just read an e-mail featuring images of lamps that really drew me in.

Sweetheart Gallery, 8 Tannery Brook Road in Woodstock, is now featuring Janna Ugone's line of hand-painted parchment-shaded table lamps. I especially like this one (in photo): the Leaf Portrait in Ivory and Redwood 500 series parchment table lamp on ceramic base. The shade is signed, hallmarked and dated.

Gals' Day Out!

I'm spending a whole day this coming weekend catching up with one of my best friends (and my former college roommate), doing one of the things we like best -- going to Crafts at Rhinebeck -- that wonderful upscale two-day show at the Dutchess County Fairgrounds on Route 9 in Rhinebeck.

I know we'll drool over the handcrafted jewelry. (We usually end up buying each other's Christmas presents at these kinds of events -- but we still act surprised when it's gift-giving time!) I also love checking out the home decor items to get ideas for future HVC magazine features. I'll probably get a piece of pottery to add to my collection. She usually ends up buying a piece of fine art. In any case, even if all we do is browse, we'll still have fun. There is also good food to eat on sale at the event, and very good restaurants in nearby Rhinebeck and Red Hook/Tivoli.

TAKE NOTE: There's a coupon, good for Admit 2 for the Price of 1 admission to Crafts at Rhinebeck, in the latest issue of Hudson Valley Connoisseur magazine. It's sold at Barnes & Noble and other area stores listed on the HVC Web site.

More HITS news

Former Olympian Todd Minikus and Ultimo Van Ter Moude (his horse) won the $25,000 Ariat Grand Prix last week at HITS Saugerties.

Hillary Dobbs, daughter of CNN Anchor Lou Dobbs, finished in fifth place in the jump-off aboard Quincy B. Dobbs. Ms. Dobbs and her horse Marengo -- coming off a second-place finish in the $50,000 Waldorf=Astoria Collection Grand Prix at Saugerties the previous weekend -- navigated the course cleanly and stopped the clocks in 38.840 to set the Great American Time to Beat. The Harvard student finished third in the Ariat feature class.

Still to come this summer:
Sunday, July 27: $50,000 Strongid C 2X Grand Prix, $5,000 Jr/A-O Jumper Low Classic & $10,000 Jr/A-O Jumper High Classic
Sunday, August 3: $50,000 HITS Grand Prix, $5,000 Jr/A-O Jumper Low Classic and $10,000 Jr/A-O Jumper High Classic
Monday, August 4– Wednesday, August 6: $50,000 USEF Junior Hunter National Championships East
Thursday, August 7: $10,000 USHJA International Hunter Derby and $5,000 Pony Commotion Hunter Classic
Sunday, August 10: $50,000 In The Woods Log Homes Grand Prix, $10,000 Jr/A-O Jumper Low Classic, $25,000 Jr/A-O Jumper High Classic & $10,000 M&S Children's/Adult Jumper Classic
Sunday, September 7: $50,000 HITS Grand Prix, $5,000 Jr/A-O Jumper Low Classic & $10,000 Jr/A-O Jumper High Classic
Wednesday, September 10–Sunday, September 14: 18th Annual Marshall & Sterling League National Finals

Plus other fun family friendly events on the weekends! More info at the Web site.

Spectator admission from Wednesdays through Fridays is free. On Saturdays & Sundays, admission is $5 for adults and free for children. All proceeds from the gate go directly to Family of Woodstock, Inc., a non-for-profit organization serving Ulster County.

The HITS Saugerties Show Series are held at HITS-on-the-Hudson in Saugerties, two miles from Exit 20 on the NYS Thruway.

Photo of Todd Minikus and Ultimo Van Ter Moude © 2008 Lili Weik Photography

The living is easy ...

Summer may still be a few days away, according to the calendar, but I feel like it's here. And that means I'm ready to take advantage of all the great summer festivals in our region! In the latest issue of HVC magazine, we have an article listing our picks for 12 top summer festivals in the region.

Many of them are already my favorites -- I almost never miss the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival and for the past few summers my daughter and I have enjoyed the entertainment at the Bard Music Festival/Summerscape. Last year's Jazz Fest at Tanglewood was a huge treat for me and I really hope I can get to Bethel Woods this year for at least one concert. There are a whole bunch of concerts at the Belleayre Music Festival that I'd love to attend (including Ronan Tynan with the Belleayre Festival Orchestra on July 5 and Chris Isaak on August 30.) The theatrical productions at Powerhouse and Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival are also high on my list and is there any better way to wrap up the summer festival season than the Hudson Valley Wine & Food Fest?

In case you can't find a copy of the magazine (they go fast!) here is a link to HVC's calendar of events.

Above, Bethel Woods Center for the Arts, photo by Darryl Bautista. Copyright 2008 Gannett Satellite Information Network, Inc.

HITS with horses and a local Guinness record?

You can meet some of the top Grand Prix riders competing this week at HITS (Horse Shows in the Sun) in Saugerties during an autograph session at Mirabella's Restaurant on Partition Street starting at 6 p.m. Saturday. Among the riders expected to appear are Hillary Dobbs (daughter of CNN Anchor Lou Dobbs) and former Olympians Todd Minikus, Margie Engle and Federico Sztyrle.

The event is part of the HITS Block Party, which is free and open to the public and takes place from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Saturday.

Here's some fun -- the party includes a Guinness Book of World Record's test at 6:30 p.m. for the World's Largest Skateboard in front of Dallas Hot Weiner's on Main Street. The board measures more than 33 feet long and took John Kahn, Ken Benson and members of the Saugerties Skatepark Junior Committee five months to build. A world-class skatepark is coming to Saugerties in the spring of 2009, across from the HITS show grounds. You have to check out the video of the GIANT skateboard.

Other highlights: from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. there will be free pony rides at Stella’s Station on Main Street, courtesy of Sharon Bach and Vertical Limit Stables. The band Powerhouse will perform from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the intersection of Main and Partition Street.

Here is more info from HITS:

Most businesses will bring the party into their stores. Participating businesses include M&T Bank (crafts from the Saugerties Art Lab), Arcadia (light snacks and cocktails), Central Hotel (light snacks and cocktails), DIG (DJ Caviar spinning live in the store), Dutch Ale House (musical performance at 9 pm), Exchange Hotel (free pizza), Michael Nelson Photography (student photography opening), Partition St.Wine Shop (wine tasting), The Pig Bar & Grill (musical performance), Shelley K (art opening and light snacks and jazz piano with John Esposito), Stella's Station (musical performance), Sweet Lili (chocolate fountain), Trillium (wine tasting) Village Pizza (fried dough) and Main Street Restaurant (balloon animals).

Parking is available in all of the municipal lots in the village, including the lot adjacent to M&T Bank and behind Mirabella's. The parking lot at Cahill School may also be used, as well as the parking lot of Sawyer Savings Bank. For more information and a complete schedule of classes and events, visit www.HitsShows.com

Tomato? Not yet, thanks!

I'm thinking about seasonal eating -- fresh Brandywine, grape and purple Cherokee tomatoes will ripen soon in my garden ... other heirloom tomatoes from the New Paltz-based Taliaferro Farms ... fresh white peaches later this summer from Montgomery Place Orchards in Red Hook ... strawberries available NOW from Mead Orchards in Tivoli ... Yum. Do you have any favorite sources for local produce to share? What's ripe in your area?

The current “tomato scare” doesn’t really affect me because I already try not to eat fresh tomatoes unless they come from my garden or from a local farm stand or farmers market. This is because I’ve found that the tomatoes sold at the grocery stores, in general, are tasteless dry red globes and an injustice to what the real veggie (or is that fruit?) should taste like. I think by now most folks know about the life cycle of the stereotypical grocery store tomato: how they are usually a variety that was bred to have the traits that allow it to be picked early (I won’t use the word harvested), ripened artificially and shipped long distance. No wonder they taste bad. I have the same attitude towards peaches and strawberries – unless they’re grown locally and super fresh, they just don’t taste good to me.

Of course, this means that I can only find fresh tomatoes, strawberries and peaches when they are in season and available in my backyard (literally or from a local source.) And that’s OK with me. I’d much rather spend a few summer months stuffing myself silly with fresh tomatoes and fruit than suffer through their cardboard imitators out of season. When their season is done, I’m usually cured of my cravings for them until the next year. And it’s cheaper too.

Eating with the seasons makes sense both to my palate and my pocketbook!

Of course, all rules have an exception and so does mine regarding tomatoes -- I've tried the hydroponic tomatoes grown by Mountain Fresh Farms in Highland and sold at my local Hannaford's and they are pretty good. The fact that they're local will probably keep me buying them on occasion until the tomatoes in my garden take off.