“Neighboring Visions: Westchester Artists Then and Now” at the Hudson River Museum

When people think of the Hudson Valley’s artistic legacy, they often think of the Hudson River School. As early as the 1890s, however, Westchester’s Lawrence Park artists colony in Bronxville was incubating a creative haven in the lower Hudson Valley whose influence continues through the present day. With its close proximity to both bucolic countryside and New York City, Westchester has long offered artists both the space to create and easy access to a flourishing metropolitan art market.

This summer, the Hudson River Museum (HRM) celebrates Westchester’s artistic allure throughout the last 150-plus years with “Neighboring Visions: Westchester Artists Then and Now”. “Neighboring Visions” juxtaposes historical landscape and figurative paintings on loan from the Bronxville Historical Conservancy with contemporary works created by Westchester-based artists.

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William Thomas Smedley (American, 1858–1920). Seated Woman with Parasol, early twentieth century. Oil on panel. Collection of the Bronxville Historical Conservancy.

Gathered together, these works testify to the power of place, revealing how artists from across time have translated the rich textures of their locales into vividly rendered paintings, photographs, films, and textiles. The exhibition also considers how artists have traveled abroad and returned to Westchester equipped with new aesthetic strategies and techniques. French Impressionism looms large, as artists from Lawrence Park’s Will Hicok Low to current New Rochelle artist Alvin Clayton translate the genre’s emphasis on visible brushwork and bright colors into luscious garden scenes.

The exhibition is curated by Karintha Lowe, HRM’s Mellon Public Humanities Fellow, with curatorial assistance provided by Sarah Lawrence College student-interns Tatiana Mezitis, Rachel Pearson, Frank Spillane, and Natalie Taylor.

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Alvin Clayton (American, b. Trinidad, 1960). The Garden Setting, 2024. Oil on canvas. Courtesy of the artist.

Visitors can experience “Neighboring Visions” and all of Hudson River Museum’s other exhibitions for free on the first Friday of each month from 5 to 8pm during Free First Fridays. This new initiative aims to make the Museum’s exhibitions more accessible, while also offering dynamic and diverse programs, including collaborations with community-based arts groups.

Hudson River Museum
Wednesday–Friday, 12–5pm
Saturday & Sunday 11am–5pm
Free extended hours the first Friday of every month, 5–8pm
Additional extended hours in the summer offered Saturdays, July 13–August 17, 5–7pm, during Summer Saturdays with Pink Floyd