KINDRED SPIRITS AT CEDARMERE ON SATURDAY

On Saturday, September 26, from 2:00 – 3:30 pm, The Friends of Cedarmere will host the popular Metropolitan Museum Educator, Inés Powell, in a free presentation entitled “Kindred Spirits: William Cullen Bryant & Painters Thomas Cole and Asher B. Durand,” at The Bryant Library in Roslyn, NY.  Inés Powell is a dynamic speaker who enthralls audiences with her lavishly illustrated lectures on important works of artists and schools of art. 

“Kindred Spirits” will examine the relationships among three principal figures of the Hudson River School of American art, most famously documented in a painting of the same title by Durand, which features a double portrait of the painter Cole with his friend and colleague, the poet Bryant, beholding the grandeur of 19th century American wilderness.  The presentation will consider the galvanizing role Bryant’s cultural and civic-minded genius played in producing this first great collective vision in American art.

All are welcome to a gala reception, at 4:00 pm, at Bryant’s historic estate--Cedarmere (just to the north in Roslyn Harbor)--a site which resonates strongly with the paintings discussed.  The Main House is newly renovated, and awaits a thorough historic restoration, including Bryant’s personal library and writing studio.  The surrounding grounds provide the only example on Long Island of the picturesque aesthetic championed by the Hudson School painters.  The gardens are in the process of gradual restoration by The Friends, and even now transport visitors to a much earlier time.  Guests at the reception will enjoy elegant refreshments on the porch, overlooking beautiful Hempstead Harbor, as well as beguiling music in the Great Room. The Bryant Library is located at 2 Paper Mill Road in Roslyn.  Cedarmere is located along the harbor at 225 Bryant Avenue.  Information on the Friends and the Event is available at www.friendsofcedarmere.org. 

---