Programs + Events

Friday, July 18, 2025, 5:00pm-6:00pm

Join Misty Cook, M. S. of the Stockbridge-Munsee Community, for a walk through Olana's landscape to learn more about plant medicines and indigenous knowledge. During this landscape walk, participants will learn from Misty about the history of the Stockbridge-Munsee Band of Mohicans medicines, highlighting the unseen histories contemporary possibilities within Olana’s landscape.

During this series of walking tours with outside experts, visitors will explore unseen aspects of Olana’s landscape such as the geologic history of Olana’s landscape, 19th century land use histories, and the connections between indigenous knowledge and Church’s beloved scenic views. Each walking tour will take place outside in Olana’s landscape for around 45 minutes to one hour and connect to What’s Missing?, an exhibition of site-specific outdoor artworks by Ellen Harvey and Gabriela Salazar that respond to missing pieces of Olana’s landscape history. You can learn more about the exhibition here: olana.org/whats-missing-exhibition/

This program is $10 per person ($5 for members). Advanced registration required. Please contact education@olana.org to learn more.

Friday, July 25, 2025, 4:00pm-5:00pm

Join contemporary artist Gabriela Salazar for a walk and conversation around her current installation in Olana’s artist-designed landscape and learn how she was inspired by the site’s historic farm complex. This one hour walk will take place outdoors near Salazar’s project, A Measure of Comfort (Cake and Cord), which activates the foundations that remain of Olana’s woodshed and icehouse. During this walk, participants will learn more about the artist’s motivation and will walk around 1 mile.

During this series of walking tours with outside experts, visitors will explore unseen aspects of Olana’s landscape such as the geologic history of Olana’s landscape, 19th century land use histories, and the connections between indigenous knowledge and Church’s beloved scenic views. Each walking tour will take place outside in Olana’s landscape for around 45 minutes to one hour and connect to What’s Missing?, an exhibition of site-specific outdoor artworks by Ellen Harvey and Gabriela Salazar that respond to missing pieces of Olana’s landscape history. You can learn more about the exhibition here: olana.org/whats-missing-exhibition/

This program is $10 per person ($5 for members), and it meets at the Wagon House Education Center. Advanced registration required. Please contact education@olana.org to learn more.

Saturday, August 23, 2025, 1:00-2:00pm

Experience learning, looking closely, and conversation as a family during this series of special museum gallery program at Olana State Historic Site. Each month, The Olana Partnership educators will lead an exploration of two to three works of art on the second floor galleries through family-friendly dialogue and other hands-on activities. Extend your day at OLANA and head down to the Wagon House Education Center for a free drop-in program, Art Making in the Afternoon from 1-4 PM.

Designed for families with children ages 3 and up. FREE PROGRAM Advanced registration required. Please contact education@olana.org to learn more.

This program is presented in connection with "A Closer Look," an installation inside the historic house.

Monday, September 1, 8:00-10:00am

Join us on Labor Day for an exploration through Olana’s artist-designed landscape while keeping eyes and ears open for local birds. Learn more about local bird species, habitats, and behaviors with Dr. William Cook, Professor Emeritus at Columbia-Greene Community College and the Curator of C-GCC's Natural History Museum and local birder/student, Autumn Hopkins.

FREE. Advanced registration required. For more information, please contact education@olana.org or call (518) 567-2170.

Image credit: Suzy Allman

September 10, 11, and 12, 10:00am-3:00pm

Take in OLANA’s breathtaking views and learn more about approaching landscape painting en plein air or “outside,” getting inspiration from artist Frederic Church in the process. During this three-part workshop, observe how contemporary painters use plein air techniques developed in the 19th century and experiment with the same approach to create your own finished works of art. Each day, expert art educator Shawn Dell Joyce will teach from a new view at Olana State Historic Site, using Church’s paintings and sketches as points of reference. This workshop will focus on making sketches, matching color to values, and painting finished plein air painting of the observed outdoor scenes.

Shawn Dell Joyce is a Florida-based plein air painter and founder of the Wallkill River School of Art based in Orange County, NY. As a skilled teacher, she has had a tremendous impact on the art community nationwide, teaching workshops in pastel and plein air techniques across the country. Her work has been featured in publications from the Tampa Bay Magazine to The New York Times, is represented in galleries across the country, and has been widely collected by corporations and families around the world including the Georges Pompidou Museum in France and the Museum of Modern Art in NY.

Participants can sign up for one day of painting or all three workshop days and should bring their own usual paints (any medium) and brushes; additional special tools will be supplied. Advanced registration required; $100 per workshop/$75 for members ($300 for all three sessions/$225 for members).

Please contact education@olana.org to learn more.

Saturday, September 20, 2025, 1:00-2:00pm

Experience learning, looking closely, and conversation as a family during this series of special museum gallery program at Olana State Historic Site. Each month, The Olana Partnership educators will lead an exploration of two to three works of art on the second floor galleries through family-friendly dialogue and other hands-on activities. Extend your day at OLANA and head down to the Wagon House Education Center for a free drop-in program, Art Making in the Afternoon from 1-4 PM.

Designed for families with children ages 3 and up. FREE PROGRAM Advanced registration required. Please contact education@olana.org to learn more.

This program is presented in connection with "A Closer Look," an installation inside the historic house.

Saturday, September 20, 2025, 1:00-2:00pm

Join Greene County Historian Jonathan Palmer for a walk through Olana's landscape to explore the unseen industrial history of the Hudson River Valley. Learn how families living in and around Olana harvested ice along the Hudson and take in Olana's striking views with the unique perspective of a regional historian. This walk and conversation will cover about 1 1/4 miles of carriage roads and discuss land use history and industrial impacts on our experience of Olana today.

During this series of walking tours with outside experts, visitors will explore unseen aspects of Olana’s landscape such as the geologic history of Olana’s landscape, 19th century land use histories, and the connections between indigenous knowledge and Church’s beloved scenic views. Each walking tour will take place outside in Olana’s landscape for around 45 minutes to one hour and connect to What’s Missing?, an exhibition of site-specific outdoor artworks by Ellen Harvey and Gabriela Salazar that respond to missing pieces of Olana’s landscape history. You can learn more about the exhibition here: olana.org/whats-missing-exhibition/

This program is $10 per person ($5 for members), and it meets at the main entrance to the historic house. Advanced registration required. Please contact education@olana.org to learn more.

Saturday, October 18th, 2025, 1:00-2:00pm

Experience learning, looking closely, and conversation as a family during this series of special museum gallery program at Olana State Historic Site. Each month, The Olana Partnership educators will lead an exploration of two to three works of art on the second floor galleries through family-friendly dialogue and other hands-on activities. Extend your day at OLANA and head down to the Wagon House Education Center for a free drop-in program, Art Making in the Afternoon from 1-4 PM.

Designed for families with children ages 3 and up. FREE PROGRAM Advanced registration required. Please contact education@olana.org to learn more.

Saturday, November 22nd, 2025, 1:00-2:00pm

Experience learning, looking closely, and conversation as a family during this series of special museum gallery program at Olana State Historic Site. Each month, The Olana Partnership educators will lead an exploration of two to three works of art on the second floor galleries through family-friendly dialogue and other hands-on activities. Extend your day at OLANA and head down to the Wagon House Education Center for a free drop-in program, Art Making in the Afternoon from 1-4 PM.

Designed for families with children ages 3 and up. FREE PROGRAM Advanced registration required. Please contact education@olana.org to learn more.

Saturday, September 27 2025, 1:00pm-5:00pm

Explore Olana’s landscape in bloom and join famed botanical artist Wendy Hollender for an afternoon drawing workshop. Explore Frederic Church’s designed landscape at Olana State Historic Site and use pencil and watercolor pencils to create realistic drawings of the flora growing in late September. During the class, participants will learn more about botanical illustration, the art of depicting the form, color, and details of plant species, and draw inspiration from the botanical drawings of Church’s daughter Isabel “Downie” Church. $30 per person ($15 for members).

Wendy Hollender is a botanical artist, illustrator, instructor, and author whose internationally-recognized career has spanned decades. She is a leading expert in using colored pencils and watercolor pencils to create detailed botanical drawings and paintings.

This program is part of a day of joint programming between The Olana Partnership and the Thomas Cole National Historic Site in connection with EMILY COLE: Ceramics, Flora & Contemporary Responses on view at the Thomas Cole Site through November 2. Start your day exploring the exhibition and Emily Cole by purchasing tickets for a special exhibition tour at this link: thomascole.org/emilycole/

Saturday, October 11 from 5:00-6:00pm

Nestled in the rose-red sandstone cliffs and surrounded by the deserts of what is today southern Jordan, the archaeological site of Petra is one of humanities greatest wonders. Hewn from canyon walls, the rock-cut city thrived for centuries as the capital of the ancient Nabataean people. Most often recognized by The Treasury, an enigmatic but stunning structure Frederic Church captured in his 1874 painting, El Khasné, Petra, the city sprawled for miles.

Join Professor Pearce Paul Creasman for a discussion of the ancient travelers who helped bring this enigmatic site to the contemporary world's attention and an exploration of the recent archaeological work shaping an understanding of Petra's history and impact. This onsite lecture takes place in the Frederic Church Center for Art & Landscape; refreshments to follow.

Professor Pearce Paul Creasman serves as executive director of the American Center of Research in Amman, Jordan. His research focuses on the heritage, archaeology, and environment of the Middle East and North Africa. With more than 100 publications to his credit, Dr. Creasman has been recognized for his work by several institutions including: the White House’s Office of Science and Technology Policy, as a fellow of The Explorer’s Club, and he was honored as a “Genius” in National Geographic’s 2021 almanac. His most recent excavations are of the Treasury in Petra (Jordan) and the pyramids of Nuri (Sudan), both UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

This program is $20 per person ($15 for members), and it meets at the Frederic Church Center for Art and Landscape. Advanced registration required. Please contact education@olana.org to learn more.

Friday, October 17, 2025, 5:00pm-6:00pm

Join contemporary artist Ellen Harvey for a walk and conversation around her current installation in Olana’s artist-designed landscape and learn how she was inspired by the site’s mysterious “summer house”. This one hour walk will take place outdoors near Harvey’s project, Winter in the Summer House, which places Frederic Church’s lost summer house with a radical reimagining of what was once there. During this walk, participants will learn more about the artist’s motivation and will walk around 1 mile.

During this series of walking tours with outside experts, visitors will explore unseen aspects of Olana’s landscape such as the geologic history of Olana’s landscape, 19th century land use histories, and the connections between indigenous knowledge and Church’s beloved scenic views. Each walking tour will take place outside in Olana’s landscape for around 45 minutes to one hour and connect to What’s Missing?, an exhibition of site-specific outdoor artworks by Ellen Harvey and Gabriela Salazar that respond to missing pieces of Olana’s landscape history. You can learn more about the exhibition here: olana.org/whats-missing-exhibition/

This program is $10 per person ($5 for members), and it meets outside the museum shop.Advanced registration required. Please contact education@olana.org to learn more.

Saturday, October 25, 2025, 1:00pm-3:00pm

Get outside and show yourself and the land some love through a special guided walk through Olana’s artist-designed landscape and views. Fru Molnar, trained and certified forest bathing guide, will lead the way, helping you connect with nature through a slow-paced, easeful sensory exploration. Based on the Japanese practice of Shinrin-yoku ("forest bathing"), participants will explore the forest while connecting with nature and themselves.

Fru Molnar (she/her) is the founder of Forest Baths (est. 2021), a lifelong student of the trees, and a Certified Forest Therapy Guide with the ANFT (Association of Nature and Forest Therapy Guides). Based in Peekskill, NY (Lenapehoking), she guides immersive nature therapy experiences throughout forests and parks of the lower Hudson Valley in partnership with all the "more-than-human" beings on this land, in service to nature and for the wellbeing of all. She is also an avid hiker and guardian of two rescue pets, who are her own personal nature therapy guides.

This program is $10 per person ($5 for members). Advanced registration required. Please contact education@olana.org to learn more.