Tuesday, January 8, 2013

The Hall of New York



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Some of the most interesting features of the Capitol Building in Albany are the
incomplete stone friezes and capitals. They evoke the mysterious unbounded
potential of the unformed. This beauty of the imperfect lurking in hidden conference
rooms and in the Senate gallery is thanks to an impatient Teddy Roosevelt who sent
all of the stone carvers home in 1899 because he insisted the building was compete.
  
Our current Governor has a different conception of public buildings than the utilitarian 
Teddy. Andy has undertaken a vast multi-year project to transform the Capitol Building
 into a first rate museum. Showing some of his predecessor’s impatience and 
expenditure prudence he accelerated work on the restoration of the Assembly and 
Senate staircase skylights, ceramic tile roof replacement, regrouting of exterior 
stonework, and asbestos abatement. While the work could have been left unfinished 
for more savings, the accelerated schedule reduced costs. Besides the completion 
of the restoration, the ongoing and rotating temporary historical displays are of 
great benefit for New Yorkers.



For the 4th of July, the revolver and ceremonial sword that were given to George
Washington by Marquis de Lafayette were on display. Dr. King’s typed and hand
corrected draft of a sermon he gave at Riverside Church is on display; Governor
Yates portrait was properly lighted and explained; Louis Armstrong’s trumpet
gleaned, Abraham Lincolns hand drafted copy of the Emancipation Proclamation,
Langston Hughes’ poem sang of universal knowledge “I've known rivers ancient
as the world and older than the flow of human blood in human veins. My soul has
grown deep like the rivers.” A painting was hung showing people as they walked
along the Erie Canal in Schenectady.



The Hall of New York on the second floor of the Capitol Building is a great display of
paintings with incredible verve, lamentable two dimensionality, piquant historical
scenes, and the serenity of Schenectady. In all, there are 56 paintings depicting
regions across the State. There are 8 paintings depicting Long Island, 10 of The
City, 7 of Mid-Hudson, 4 of the Mohawk Valley, 5 of the North Country, 5 of Central
NY, 5 of the Southern Tier, 4 of the Finger Lakes, 4 of Western NY and 4 from the
Capital Region, and of these 4, 2 are of Schenectady. 34 are from the 19 th Century,
with 10 of these from before the Civil War. 22 were painted in the 20 th Century,
with 10 of these completed after WWII. 24 of the paintings are of landscapes that
include people, houses or boats as minor props; including a lovely depiction of a
few mothers and their children having a foraging picnic a the edge of a glimmering
lake. 26 of the paintings depict the built environment: cites entering winter, villages
nestled in valleys, and the bustling, yet not impersonal, glory of Times Square.
Painters take note, 62.5% of the paintings hung include water: oceans, harbors,
streams, lakes, rivers and 5 feature waterfalls, because everyone loves a good
waterfall.



The Schenectady County Historical Society loaned the two paintings of Schenectady
that are on what seems to be permanent display. One flat painting, “7 Dock Street”
attributed to Jerome Barhydt, ca. 1860-1870, shows an old Erie Canal barge in front
of a trading merchants store. A few people in black clothes mill about, but nothing
interesting is happening. The value of the scene lies in the sense of proportions
one gathers about the size of the vessels used on the canal and their function in
everyday commerce, as well as the general depiction of what could have been one of
Schenectady’s greatest assets if the visionaries did not turn it into a speedway.



“Old Covered Bridge” by W. H. Yates, ca. 1870, is far more accessible. It depicts one
of the most pleasant things about Schenectady, viewing downtown from across
the river after you have paddled there on a fine summer afternoon. The sky and
river eat up most of the canvas, but two gentlemen chat on the bank unburdened by
encroaching modernity.



Also of note about this painting is the description beneath it. “Schenectady was a
pre-colonial home to the Native Americans. In the 19th century, Schenectady became
one of America’s leading industrial cities.” This reference to an inhabitant society
prior to the arrival of the alcohol and gun selling Europeans raises questions about
the absence of Native culture in the stories we tell as a neighborhood. How can
we incorporate the maps that the 1st Reformed Church has showing the locations
of long houses in downtown Schenectady into our guided tours? Why is the
Eurocentric story of the arrival void of reference to the multiple treaties signed with
Natives concerning their continuing claims to the land? How can we discuss and
present “The Indian” in a way that is more substantial than who casted him?



The Hall of New York, all of the other historical exhibits, and the grand Capitol
Building itself, is a treasure for New Yorkers that should not be missed.


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Mostly photos of the Hall of New York, but there are some additional photos to supplement a Stockade Spy article published in April 2013 about the Capitol Building over the past few years.

Updated March 31, 2013

The Stanley Cup in the Seal Room outside of the Assembly Chamber. The owners of the Bruins live in Buffalo, so the cup made its rounds in the State.  January 2012.



 Louis Armstrong's Trumpet on display in the War Room



The 4 Leaders cut the ribbon to unveil the Senate skylight

 Langston Huges' letter to W.E.B. DuBois on display in the War Room



A black and white detail of a color painting of the Erie Canal in Schenectady.


 Dr. King's typed and handwritten draft of a speech that he gave at Morningside Church in Upper Manhattan. On display in multiple locations in the Capitol Building over the past few years.




Schenectady; Riverside

 The Leaders view art of Schenectady

 Rockwell Kent's vision of the Adirondacks





This is a moving image- eerily provoking

They came to the Capitol to deliver 200,000 letters to the DEC against Fracking. The scientist they were working with was excellent- very compelling. The science is quite clear that fracking would not be allowed under the proposed regulations.

 The only picture in the Hall of New York that depicts Natives. Separated by a road, looking in, unwelcomed yet curious of the white Brahmins.







The Hall of New York, 2nd Floor of the Capitol Building, on Tuesday, January 8, 2013, the evening before the official unveiling. 

An employee takes in a 19th Century painting of NYC before heading home for the night.

Many paintings of all regions of NYS adorn the northern portion of the 2nd floor of the capitol building.

The Blue Room's windows were recently restored. Previously they were boarded up so that the public could not observe meetings and press conferences held by the Executive.



 This is a very fine painting of Schenectady from across the river, however it is substantially degraded by this grainy photo. The painting is just outside the Blue Room.



"Schenectady was a pre-colonial home to Native Americans."
This is quite a different view of history than the Stockade Association presents on their light pole banners that proudly, and wrongly, proclaim that Schenectady was Established in 1661. Acknowledgment of an indigenous culture also undermines the implied primacy of the "ancient churches" that their Audio Tour extolls. Hopefully the Executive's recognition of Native culture in Schenectady will propel residents to tell stories of the complex and dynamic peoples that demonstrated democracy, as well as a respect for nature, to the alcohol and gun loving foreigners from across the ocean.

Artist is W.H. Yates 1845-1935
Schenectady's Erie Canal. "7 Dock Street" by Jerome Barhydt

Times Square painted in the 1960s and some painted stone carving

Some respect for the workers that built NY is paid by Executive in displaying this painting.





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