Woodstock Way

Spirituality and Creativity

Their applications:

• Can be uplifting
• Practiced daily
• Worked on anywhere
• Can be inspired

The ultimate work of art is oneself.

When applied in concert and/or with others, the outward ripples can be awesome.

Herstory

Anita Smith felt that an artist’s work is only as important as her understanding of life. From her early days as a budding artist she sought to dig below the surface of conventional thinking. For example, she felt that she could not paint the Catskills without knowing something of their history. Smith wanted to know why the fields were where they were and why certain fence posts were located where they were. This quest led her to speak with local farmers, to travel the land by horseback and foot and to thoroughly research local books and historical papers.

She noted that in editing Woodstock History and Hearsay she eliminated uninteresting and irrelevant details. Smith used her taste and interests to guide her editorial eye. Nothing was included through carelessness—for all elements were employed to build a picture. In addition, she noted that she purposely and emphatically tried to write from a community standpoint. By boring into the minutia of facts she gathered small details and through the aggregate of fragments built the story of Woodstock, NY.

Artful Living

During the early 1900s the Woodstock, NY artists roughed it for their art. Farmers found they made more money renting their converted chicken coops and barns to artists. Some of the farmers provided chimneys, but saved on costs by only installing half-chimneys. These were hung on a bracket a few feet below the roof. Wood was cheap and the artists purchased woodstoves from mail-order catalogs.

John Carlson swore that when the belly of his stove was red hot he could pick icicles off its bottom. If artists complained about lack of insulation, the farmer’s wife invariably came over with some of their clothing to stuff the gap. In-door plumbing was years away and so privies were the rule and streams provided natural dishwashers.

Nonetheless the artists persevered through summers and winters. Artists worked in their studios all day and then foregathered in the evening at one studio or another to discuss their artistic techniques and inspirations. This early era was known as the golden age of Woodstock colony. Some of the early artists included Andrew Dasburg, Henry L. McFee, Frank S. Chase, Marion Bullard, Eugene Speicher, among many others.