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Click to visit the
Official Town Site
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Silent Walks on the Half Moon
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| Take a Silent Walk on the Half Moon |
May 20, 2010
Follow the Half Moon Walks on the blog here.
Meeting Place: At the Trail Head on Mountain Rd in Cornwall-on-Hudson, NY
(Carpooling is encouraged; parking is limited)
Time: 6:00-7:00 p.m.
Contact: Jackie Skrzynski, [email protected] 845.304.3142
The public is invited to participate in 12 once-a-month performances called “Silent Walks on the Half-Moon.” Each performance will lead participants on a group silent walk through the woods at the base of Storm King Mountain. This mountain is part of the Hudson Highlands, a chain of mountains that border the lower Hudson River.
Participants will meet at a designated parking area at the Mountain Road trailhead in Cornwall-on-Hudson. There, they will be briefly introduced to the performance, including the requirement of silence. Participants will be directed to follow each other along a wide path for about 20 minutes to a trail spur that goes to a look out. From the look out, they will be able to view an impressive expanse of the Hudson River that stretches for about four miles.
When: The performances will take place once a month at 6pm on the evening of the waxing half-moon. Tip: Waxing moons are being born, so when you add a line to the crescent, it forms the letter “b.” Waning moons are dying, so the added line forms the letter “d.” This day of the month was chosen to commemorate Henry Hudson’s vessel, the Halfmoon. (This year marks the 400th anniversary of Hudson’s sailing this river, so many villages are organizing celebrations.) The time of day was chosen for its convenience to the workday and for its clear demonstration of light changing over the course of the year. Imagine the difference between the first sunny 6pm walk in June and the darkness at 6pm in December. Participants are encouraged to attend as many walks as they can throughout the year. After each person has had a chance to enjoy the view, the procession will follow a loop back down to the trailhead. People are encouraged to share their experiences of the walk before leaving.
Only dangerously severe weather such as lightening will postpone a performance by one day. While general precautions will be taken, participants will agree in writing to walk at their own risk. Flashlights, bug repellant and a first aid kit will be available at each walk.
The fundamental purpose of this project is to create a situation where the experience of landscape as art is as unfiltered as possible. Rather than experiencing representations of landscape in a gallery or museum where viewers are relatively passive and removed from the actual land depicted, they will be required to physically put themselves into what they are observing. In fact, they are part of it.
Contextualizing the Silent Walks as an artistic experience allows participants to “turn on their art light.” In other words, they will consider their sensory experience in a consciously aesthetic way. That is also the reason to walk in silence. Sharing without words will allow participants to pay attention to the ambient sounds, smells, colors and weather rather than their conversations. Not talking does not mean not sharing, as each participant will be part of a large group walking silently along a trail. Perhaps they will even feel like a herd, and while that may seem humorous, the identification with what is animal about us, and our collective experience, is the core concept of the Silent Walks.
Skrzynski was inspired by the work of Andy Goldsworthy and Richard Long, two artists who essentially point to nature and say, “Notice this!” She also considers these walks as a tribute to the Hudson River School of landscape painting. She links these performances to collaborative performances by artists such as Rirkrit Tarivanija, who cooked meals for people as his gallery exhibition. Skrzynski believes participants in the Silent Walks will retain a potent memory of this specific place at this particular time. Especially for those who walk each month, memories of seasonal ambience, discomfort and pleasure will form a profound awareness of the Storm King Mountain over time. She intends for these experiences to permeate into a daily awareness of our connections to our surroundings. Skrzynski also believes in the power of the ephemeral. Each performance survives only in memory, yet these memories can change behavior.
Her community is proud of its relationship to the Hudson River and has fought to keep it unspoiled. These performances participate in that tradition, creating a chance to form lasting connections within the simple act of taking a walk. With the Silent Walks, Skrzynski creates a context, naming a walk through the woods as ‘Art’ to alter concepts of what and who is nature, and what and who makes art.
Community Interaction.
For locals, these walks will foster a “pride of place” as they share the unique qualities of where they live and pay homage to it. As part of the “Celebrate New York 400” events, the walks will have a historical context as well. For example, 30 years ago the Hudson Valley community fought to save Storm King Mountain from being the site of a huge power plant. (This gave birth to the Scenic Hudson organization and most consider it the birth of the environmental movement.)
The post-walk reception and the facebook page will provide another layer of community interaction. Because the artwork is fundamentally participatory, each walk will engender a shared experience that will connect people not only to their environment, but also to each other. In a larger sense, Skrzynski hopes this project will be the first of many community-based Silent Walks started by other artists anywhere in the world.
Timeline.
June 29, 2009--First Silent Walk-reception following at 2 Alice’s
July 28, 2009
August 27, 2009
September 26, 20009
October 25, 2009
November 24, 2009
December 23, 2009
January 23, 2010
February 22, 2010
March 23, 2010
April 21, 2010
May 20, 2010--Final Silent Walk and closing reception
Comments:
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please tell me that no tax dollars are being spent on this nonsense. I might be in the woods whispering "fools....."
posted by Walter Dorritie on 06/25/09 at 12:15 PM
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Geeze Walter thanks for your open minded and cogent musings on this attempt to broaden awareness of our own beautiful environment. Although I too am one who is concerned about our ever increasing taxes, I have a feeling this is one person's independent attempt to raise awareness of environment and "art" in the natural world around us. I have always thought that God puts on some of the the greatest shows on earth. Sad to see that some have to deride others "foolish" attempts to see and share the beauty around us.
posted by Chuck Trella on 06/25/09 at 1:37 PM
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thanks for the comments. no tax dollars supported this project, but i am selling t-shirts and bandanas to cover my few expenses. speaking for myself, during the first walk, i felt self-conscious and as you (walter d.) hint, a little foolish, but i think that will diminish over time. the idea for the walks is very simple. i wanted to have an experience like walking into a beautiful painting, except with all the smells, noises and weather that an actual experience offers. To paraphrase Chuck T, our mountain puts on some of the greatest shows on earth.
posted by thom munterich on 07/28/09 at 1:31 PM
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whoops--that last post is from me, jackie skrzynski, not my husband.
posted by thom munterich on 07/28/09 at 1:32 PM
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My wife and I participated in the first two silent walks, and I would recommend it to anyone interested in doing something simple and different, and for a brief and pleasant moment, stepping out of the normal routines of life.
posted by Rick Gioia on 08/27/09 at 11:17 AM
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It is obvious to me that Walter did not grow up around here or he would know the magic of the mountain. Perhaps he is one of those spiritually bereft souls who cannot perceive the beauty that fills our valley.How sad. I went to tonight's walk but arrived late. Nevertheless, I set out on the path, determined to experience the hike as a silent observer. At first I was dismayed at missing the group,I thought I might catch up to them, but in silence, what would we have shared but presence? So my hike turned into a meditation on relationships with people and nature. I noticed the sounds and the air and the smells, and the absence of chatter. And eventually, I ended up on a trail that I had not walked before and was blessed with a view of the river (My River) that I had not experienced. And I thought of my father, who loved the river and shared that love with his kids. The anniversary of his passing is this Saturday, and I thought, what a wonderful thing to share this with my Dad; this walk , this view, this quiet. Thank you, Jackie, for that gift. Walter, if you're lucky , you'll make it into the woods.
posted by Kate Benson on 08/27/09 at 11:52 PM
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(And if the rest of us are lucky, he won't be able to find his way back out...)
Just kidding; you gave me far too good a set-up to let it pass, Kate.
Walter, nothing but the best to you. Seriously, since it's free, and hasn't cost you anything in taxes, maybe you can try it out.
Peg and I are hoping to give it a go, ourselves.
posted by Stephen Sywak on 02/20/10 at 4:28 PM
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