Programs + Events

Saturday, June 25, 2022, 12:00-3:00PM

“What a blessing it is to be able to sketch – The Great Book of Nature is always open and there are no blank leaves for the artist.” - Frederic Edwin Church, 1898

Spend time outside drawing summer blooms and learning more about how to capture your own outdoor observations on paper! During this afternoon workshop for all ages and skill levels, botanical artist Wendy Hollender will guide participants in using different materials to explore botanical drawing and nature journaling throughout Olana’s artist-designed landscape. Nature journaling combines science and art to help you slow down, observe, and interact creatively with the natural world. Participants will learn more about basic pen and drawing techniques and create accordion-style booklets together to house their illustrations and observations. Join us to learn more about drawing techniques, nature journaling, plant forms, and to enjoy the beginning of the summer season.

Wendy Hollender is a botanical artist, illustrator, author, and instructor. Hollender’s illustrations have been featured in numerous publications. Wendy is an instructor of Botanical Art and Illustration at the New York Botanical Garden and leads workshops at her farm in Accord, New York. In 2016, she started a highly successful online botanical drawing program: www.drawbotanical.com

Open to all ages and recommended for ages 12 and up. $25 per person, ($15 for members). All materials will be provided. Advanced registration required. For more information, please contact education@olana.org.

4:00-7:00pm

While Olana may be known for its famous 19th Century creator, the artist Frederic Church, other creative members of the Church family lived and explored its 250 acres during their lifetimes. Church’s own daughter, Isabel Charlotte “Downie” Church, was an experienced botanical illustrator, engaging in a common art practice of the time period. Downie painted botanical studies since she was a teenager and continued to both paint and grow flowers throughout her life. The Olana collection contains over a hundred examples of Downie’s work, including paintings completed at Olana.

Botanical illustration focuses on depicting the form, color, and details of plant species. During this course designed for participants of all skill levels, students will explore how to depict the form, color, and details of plant species. Just as the Churches used the flora and fauna of the Hudson Valley to inspire their own artwork, this course will encourage a deeper understanding of drawing, color, and the natural world by studying nature’s forms and colors. During this four-part course over four days, teaching artist Wendy Hollender will guide participants to learn more about drawing techniques, qualities of color, and to deepen their understanding of plant forms and structures just like the botanical painters and illustrators of the 19th century.

Wendy Hollender is a botanical artist, illustrator, author, and instructor. Wendy is an instructor of Botanical Art and Illustration at the New York Botanical Garden and leads workshops at her farm in Accord, New York. In 2016, she started a highly successful online botanical drawing program: www.drawbotanical.com. She is a member of the American Society of Botanical Artists, the Brooklyn Botanic Garden Florilegium Society and the National Tropical Botanical Garden Florilegium Project.

$200 person, $150 members. Limited capacity; Advanced registration required at OLANA.org. Scholarships are available upon request. For more information, please contact education@olana.org or call (518) 751-6938.

Saturday, July 16, 2022, 1:00-2:30PM

Join Nkoula Badila, founder of Grow Black Hudson, for a walk exploring Olana’s wildlife informed by her work with herbal medicine, community advocacy, and sustainable agricultural practice. During this program, participants will see Olana’s landscape in a new way and explore how it can serve as a resource for healing and connection. Grow Black Hudson is a movement to re-introduce black and brown community members to the importance of agricultural practice, connecting to nature, and creating more local Black leadership. Founded in mid-June of 2020, Grow Black Hudson, has established 17 raised-bed gardens in Hudson, NY to grow fresh food for local families.

Nkoula Badila is a multidisciplinary artist, born of Congolese traditions in New York. Nkoula founded Grow Black Hudson, an initiative that aims to reconnect her Black + Brown community to the plant knowledge of our ancestors, and spread access to fresh food. The program also opens space to talk about sustainable lifestyles as well as returning to the earth, natural plant medicine, and meditation. Nkoula also teaches youth programs like dancing and drumming, beading, and crafting.

$15 person, $10 members. Advanced registration required. For more information or to learn more about program discounts, please contact education@olana.org.

This program is part of our 2022 program series, Environmentalists on Olana. During this series, regional environmentalists, activists, agriculturalists, and ecological stewards will lead walking tours of Olana, engaging participants in the work of their organizations and providing new insights into Olana’s 250-acres. To learn more, visit olana.org/environmentalists.

Saturday, August 13, 2022, 1:00-2:00PM

Join Columbia Land Conservancy's Jenifer Rosete for an afternoon of lake exploration. Take a closer look at Olana’s man-made Lake to learn what macroinvertebrates are living below the surface and what they can tell us about water quality. Waders, nets and field guides will be provided. The Columbia Land Conservancy works with our community to conserve the farmland, forests, wildlife habitat and rural character of Columbia County, strengthening connections between people and the land.

Jenifer Rosete joined CLC in October 2020 and is a Columbia County native with a degree in Environmental Science from the Rochester Institute of Technology Jenifer enjoys connecting to nature through hiking, bird watching, photography, and searching for geocaches.

$15 person, $10 members. Advanced registration required. For more information or to learn more about program discounts, please contact education@olana.org.

This program is part of our 2022 program series, Environmentalists on Olana. During this series, regional environmentalists, activists, agriculturalists, and ecological stewards will lead walking tours of Olana, engaging participants in the work of their organizations and providing new insights into Olana’s 250-acres. To learn more, visit olana.org/environmentalists.

9:00am-12:00pm

During this eight-session course, participants will be invited to explore Olana's famous views, making art at the sites and viewpoints once experienced and designed by Frederic Church himself. Each class will begin with a demonstration (all demonstrations are done by Teaching Artist Shawn Dell Joyce in pastel and oil paint). Pastel painting materials and basic sketching supplies will be provided as the central tools to guide participants in learning key principles about outdoor artmaking or painting "plein air". The course will focus on the key principles of depicting a landscape, such as harnessing perspective, composition, and detail, while also covering important information on how best to prepare for artmaking outdoors. The course is open to all skill levels and participants without a background working outdoors are encouraged to participate. Each class will meet at a designated outdoor location onsite in Church's designed landscape, offering students a unique opportunity to learn from a living practicing artist while walking in Church's footsteps. The course will culminate with a final display of student's artworks.

Shawn Dell Joyce began teaching plein air classes in 2000 and continues weekly to this day. She founded a plein air school with an arts and agricultural mission based on the historic Hudson River School, called the Wallkill River School of Art. It still exists today as a nonprofit arts organization with a mission of bringing cultural tourism to the Hudson Valley region through plein air painting workshops and events on local farms, historic sites and open spaces. Her work is included in museum collections in the Georges Pompidou Museum in France and the Museum of Modern Art in NY.

$200 person, $150 members. Limited capacity; Advanced registration required at OLANA.org. Scholarships are available upon request. For more information, please contact education@olana.org or call (518) 751-6938.

During the COVID-19 crisis, The Olana Partnership will refund registration before this program upon cancellation for any reason. Please note that The Olana Partnership reserves the right to cancel this program due to extreme weather or other dangerous conditions.

This course is funded by E.A. Michelson Philanthropy.

Saturday, August 27, 2:00-3:00pm

“…and [I] make a study from my studio window of a sunset or twilight nearly every day…” Frederic E. Church to Martin Johnson Heade, February, 8, 1871. Collection Archives of American Art.

Ever wonder how artists like Frederic Church captured detail, contrast, and perspective? Visitors of all ages and skill levels are invited to sketch Frederic Church’s artist-designed landscape and main house, learning basic artistic principles in the process. During this hour-long program led by teaching artist Shawn del Joyce, participants will be given sketching materials, watch a short live demo with a professional teaching artist, and experiment with sketching their own view of Olana’s famous landscape.

Shawn Dell Joyce began teaching plein air classes in 2000 and continues weekly to this day. She founded a plein air school with an Arts and Agricultural mission based on the historic Hudson River School, called the Wallkill River School of Art. It still exists today as a nonprofit arts organization with a mission of bringing cultural tourism to the Hudson Valley region through plein air painting workshops and events on local farms, historic sites and open spaces. Her work is included in museum collections in the Georges Pompidou Museum in France and the Museum of Modern Art in NY.

All materials will be provided. Advanced registration required. $20 per person ($15 for members). For more information, please contact education@olana.org.

Saturday, September 3, 8:00am

Get your binoculars ready for this Labor Day Weekend Bird Walk! Join the Alan Devoe Bird Club on 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.

FREE, advanced registration required. For more information, contact education@olana.org.

Saturday, September 10, 2022, 4:00-5:00PM

Join Alejandro del Peral of Nine Pin Cider and Jake Samascott of Samascott Orchards for a tour of Olana’s historic orchard and conversation about their work together. During this program, participants will learn more about Nine Pin and Samascott Orchard’s work together, current orchard practices, the contemporary craft of cider-making, and the environmental impact of sourcing local produce and supporting New York Agriculture.

Alejandro del Peral grew up an all-around apple enthusiast in Columbia County, New York, fascinated by the gnarly apples from the trees his father planted from seed. After studying wildlife biology at McGill University in Montreal and hydrology at the University of Vermont, Alejandro came home and founded Nine Pin Cider Works in Albany, New York's first farm cidery.

Jake Samascott is one of the fourth-generation farmers at Samascott Orchards which is now growing over 100 named apple varieties and has about 400 trees of brand new exclusive apple varieties. Samascott Orchards are constantly expanding and diversifying product offerings and is always looking for new varieties and crops to try.

$15 person, $10 members. Advanced registration required. For more information or to learn more about program discounts, please contact education@olana.org.

This program is part of our 2022 program series, Environmentalists on Olana. During this series, regional environmentalists, activists, agriculturalists, and ecological stewards will lead walking tours of Olana, engaging participants in the work of their organizations and providing new insights into Olana’s 250-acres. To learn more, visit olana.org/environmentalists.

Saturday, September 10, 10:00am-1:00pm

Join Olana’s resident beekeeper and pollinator-advocate Chris Layman for this deeper look inside keeping bees and maintaining a healthy hive. During this workshop, participants will take a closer look at Olana’s hives to learn about the ins and outs of caring for their own bees at home. Discover what’s happening in the hive throughout the year, what is needed to keep bees healthily and sustainably, and how you can contribute to pollinator health in other ways.

During the program, participants will get close to an active observation hive and should bring their own suit or bee veil if possible; limited bee veils will be made available during the program.

Recommended for ages 12 and up. All participants under 18 must be accompanied by an adult. $50/$25 for members. Advanced registration required. For more information, please contact education@olana.org.

Saturday, September 10, 2022, 1:00pm-2:30pm

Time travel back to Olana’s ice age past! Join geologist Robert Titus for a walking tour showcasing Olana’s artist-designed landscape through science and storytelling. During this program, participants will learn more about the geological history of Olana and the forces that shaped Frederic Church’s masterpiece.

$15 person, $10 members. For more information, please contact education@olana.org or call (518) 567-2170.

1:00pm-4:00pm

During this eight-session course, participants will be invited to learn more about the basics of songwriting with award-winning performing songwriters, Cosby Gibson and Tom Staudle. This course will introduce participants of all skill levels to the basics of songwriting, use Olana's immersive environment as a framework to explore diverse musical genres, connect students' developing skills to the music of Olana and Frederic Church's historical context, and finally encourage participants to compose a final song inspired by Olana or a Frederic Church painting.

Each three-hour session will cover the basics of songwriting, genre study, historic songs, songwriting inspired by visual art, songwriting inspired by physical place, personal lyrics, and performance concepts. Each session includes a performance and demonstration by the artists, hands-on teaching and one-on-one guidance, time for individual development of final songs, opportunities for class inquiries and discussion, and an opportunity for participants' songs to be performed at the end of the course, or to be performed by teaching musicians on guitar.

Cosby Gibson and Tom Staudle are award winning songwriters and singers and live near the Adirondacks in upstate New York. Cosby Gibson is an award-winning performing songwriter who lives near the Adirondack Mountains. She writes unique, original acoustic and folk-style songs on guitar and dulcimer. Grammy balloted, and winner Capital District Music Awards for Best Folk Album, 2017 and 2018, and Dorn Space Arts Award for Music Outreach, 2019, and Best Folk Album, 2021. As a duo, they have been performing for twelve years, and tour both regionally and nationally. Together they play originals and favorites with a variety of instruments such as guitar, fiddle, banjo, and harmonica, and in many settings such as festivals, concert series, house concerts, and community events. Their special music programs include; Historic Songs of the Erie Canal, Adirondack Lumber Camp Songs, Poetry Songs and History Songs, Songwriters in the Round, and the new Labor Union Songs.

$200 person, $150 members. Limited capacity; Advanced registration required at OLANA.org. Scholarships are available upon request. For more information, please contact education@olana.org or call (518) 751-6938.

During the COVID-19 crisis, The Olana Partnership will refund registration before this program upon cancellation for any reason. Please note that The Olana Partnership reserves the right to cancel this program due to extreme weather or other dangerous conditions.

This course is funded by E.A. Michelson Philanthropy.

Saturday, October 8, 2022, 1:00-2:00PM

Join Riverkeeper’s new President Tracy Brown for a walking tour of Olana’s artist-designed landscape focusing on the current threats and future prospects for the Hudson River, which sits directly in Olana’s historic viewshed. Learn more about how we can work together to meet the challenges impacting the health of the Hudson River and the upcoming priorities for the river's leading team of advocates. Riverkeeper’s mission is to protect and restore the Hudson River from source to sea and safeguard drinking water supplies, through advocacy rooted in community partnerships, science and law.

Tracy Brown became President and Hudson Riverkeeper in 2021. A recognized leader in clean water advocacy, Brown brings a multidisciplinary approach to Riverkeeper, prioritizing data-driven, community-oriented strategies to realize our mission. She previously served as Regional Director of Water Protection at Save the Sound, establishing their New York office which delivers science-based projects that protect and restore Long Island Sound. Prior to joining Save the Sound, Brown worked at Riverkeeper for seven years. She was instrumental in developing Riverkeeper's water quality monitoring program. A resident of Sleepy Hollow, Brown is a founder of the Peabody Preserve Outdoor Classroom, a nature preserve for hands-on, outdoor education for the students of the Tarrytown-Sleepy Hollow public schools.

$15 person, $10 members. Advanced registration required. For more information or to learn more about program discounts, please contact education@olana.org.

This program is part of our 2022 program series, Environmentalists on Olana. During this series, regional environmentalists, activists, agriculturalists, and ecological stewards will lead walking tours of Olana, engaging participants in the work of their organizations and providing new insights into Olana’s 250-acres. To learn more, visit olana.org/environmentalists.

Saturday, October 15, 2022, 1:00-2:00PM

Join Partners for Climate Action to learn more about how scientific thinking in Frederic Church’s era connects to our own contemporary climate crisis. One of the treasures in the Church family library is a first edition of “Man and Nature,” the landmark treatise by George Perkins Marsh, considered by scholars to be America’s first environmentalist. Marsh was prophetic in his observations on the decline of our ecosystem and Church understood how farm and forest environments within Olana played a role in the larger ecosystem of the Hudson Valley. During this outdoor walking tour, Partners for Climate Action will connect the thinking of Marsh and Church to actions being made today to mitigate and adapt to climate change while exploring Olana’s varied ecosystems.

Matt Stinchcomb is co-founder of Partners for Climate Action. Prior to shifting his attention to the nonprofit world, where he also helped to found the Good Work Institute and PlaceCorps, Matt was Vice President for Values and Impact at Etsy.com.

Bob Dandrew is co-founder of Partners for Climate Action. He has a 30-year career in nonprofit leadership and philanthropy. He also serves as a program director at The New World Foundation in NYC.

$15 person, $10 members. Advanced registration required. For more information or to learn more about program discounts, please contact education@olana.org.

This program is part of our 2022 program series, Environmentalists on Olana. During this series, regional environmentalists, activists, agriculturalists, and ecological stewards will lead walking tours of Olana, engaging participants in the work of their organizations and providing new insights into Olana’s 250-acres. To learn more, visit olana.org/environmentalists.

Saturday, October 22, 2022, 3:00-4:00PM

Frederic Church designed Olana’s landscape to maximize his views of the Hudson River and Catskill Mountains, an inspiration for many of his paintings. Join Scenic Hudson Director of Land Conservation Cari Watkins Bates and Director of Land Use Advocacy Jeffrey Anzevino to learn how Olana has inspired 50 years of collaborative — and ongoing — efforts to protect Olana’s integral viewshed and create exciting ways of connecting people with the region’s natural beauty and cultural heritage.

Cari Watkins-Bates’ 20+ year career in land conservation has been focused on the preservation, restoration, and access to both natural and cultural resources (including agricultural lands). She has a MA in Energy and Environmental Analysis from Boston University. Prior to joining Scenic Hudson, she was with The Nature Conservancy’s Nevada Field Office.

Jeffrey Anzevino, AICP, the Director of Land Use Advocacy at Scenic Hudson where he has worked for 30 years helping communities revitalize their riverfronts, protect views and expand river access. He has a BA in Geography from the University of Maryland Baltimore County and has for 11 years taught Environmental Planning at Marist College.

$15 person, $10 members. Advanced registration required. For more information or to learn more about program discounts, please contact education@olana.org.

This program is part of our 2022 program series, Environmentalists on Olana. During this series, regional environmentalists, activists, agriculturalists, and ecological stewards will lead walking tours of Olana, engaging participants in the work of their organizations and providing new insights into Olana’s 250-acres. To learn more, visit olana.org/environmentalists.

Saturday, November 5, 2022, 3:00-4:00PM

Join Churchtown Dairy’s Deputy Director, Amy Gavaris, during this tour of Olana’s farm complex linking Olana, the Hudson Valley’s long history of agricultural tradition, and Churchtown Dairy’s current biodynamic farming model. During this program, participants will learn more about Olana’s origins as a working farm and the ways in which the legacy of farming in this region impact sustainable farming practices today. Churchtown Dairy is a biodynamic farm in Hudson, NY that intends to serve as a beacon for those working to promote organic agriculture and resilient communities. Their 250-acre farm property, which houses a 28-cow raw milk dairy herd as well as a medicinal garden, is open to all to explore solutions to the pressing needs of our time.

Amy Gavaris holds degrees in Landscape Architecture and a Master’s in Urban Design and was a founding staff member of Bette Midler’s New York Restoration Project. While there, she managed NYRP’s programmatic initiatives, open space redevelopment of public parks and community gardens, and major capital projects. Amy returned to the Hudson Valley – an area she knows and loves well from her teen years at the Shaker Villager Work Group in New Lebanon— as a Bard student in the late ‘60s, and then a part-time resident of Chatham. In 2017, she began her work at Churchtown Dairy developing the Farm Store and Welcome Center into what is now a successful operation and a touchpoint for visitors to the farm.

$15 person, $10 members. Advanced registration required. For more information or to learn more about program discounts, please contact education@olana.org.

This program is part of our 2022 program series, Environmentalists on Olana. During this series, regional environmentalists, activists, agriculturalists, and ecological stewards will lead walking tours of Olana, engaging participants in the work of their organizations and providing new insights into Olana’s 250-acres. To learn more, visit olana.org/environmentalists.