The tri-state upper Delaware River highlands and valleys are a place of rare beauty…
Seeing the region and living in it almost aren’t enough. Such beauty should be captured on canvas or film so that one can truly appreciate it, glimpse it in the quiet of an art gallery or museum, or between the pages of a poetry book or literary sketch.
The Journal Group’s mission is to capture these momentary snapshots of beauty graphically and through the written word. We celebrate our area and the uniqueness of the people who live and work in the tri-state region. From Pike to Wayne and Monroe to Lackawanna Counties in Pennsylvania, upriver to Sullivan County and on to Orange County in New York, and to the headwaters of the Wallkill River and
Mission
Editorial Readers Robert Bowman Amy Smith
David Dangler dangler908@yahoo.com
The Poet Paulette Calasibetta
along Warren and Sussex Counties’ rolling hills in New Jersey, with quaint, historic towns and hamlets at the center, the Journal Group opens its doors to our communities, businesses and organizations, to serve as a communicative journal of all that we have to offer for those who live here and for those who love to visit us, too.
Publication Information
The Journal Group publishes The Journal ten times a year and distributes it in eight counties in PA, NJ and NY. We assume no responsibility for unsolicited manuscripts. Contents may not be reproduced in any form without prior written permission. We reserve the right to refuse to print advertisements that we deem inappropriate. All rights reserved.
A few weeks ago, I was a guest speaker at Centenary University’s Intro to Journalism class. It’s always a great pleasure to go to the Hackettstown, NJ, campus and speak with this entry level class. My hope is to inspire students with a bit of my background and to tell The Journal’s story so they see in real time that goals can be set and dreams can be accomplished.
I come from a family of hard-working entrepreneurs. My maternal grandfather opened a hardware store back in the day when there was a big golden cash register on the wooden counter and loose nails were displayed in silver pails underneath that counter. If a customer wanted a can of paint that sat too near the tin-plated ceiling, my grandpa would roll the wooden ladder over the wide, woodplanked floors to that part of the shop and climb up. It was an old-fashioned setup, the kind of ladder on a track that you only see in fancy libraries nowadays.
Getting back to my time at Centenary—we covered a lot of great topics. The students were interested in my take on AI and work ethics, and, of course, we touched on the craft of writing and editing and my untraditional path to this career as an entrepreneurial independent publisher.
We never really know what will be an inspiration to others. I always remember my grandfather running out to the sidewalk with a can of oil to spray on the squeaky wheel of a passing baby pram, and I’m sure that this memory inspired me to develop a propensity toward being kind to strangers and helping others when I can.
Inspiring budding journalists to have the courage to write and guiding them to understand that they can turn their
passion into a career is right up my alley. So in that vein, The Journal, with the help of Janet Zatta, Professor of Writing, held a “Holiday Meal Remembrance” contest that was open to this semester’s Intro to Journalism class, as well as her Newspaper Production Studio.
There were many good entries, and the final selection was Joe Hamway’s “Pecan Tassies” story, which we published as the Food article in this issue. Joe’s dream is to live in New York City and become a professional writer. I say, “Go for it!”
When I was a kid, the most exciting time of year was when my grandfather began to decorate his shop’s two front windows with snowflakes and shiny material. Nothing plastic, nothing that screamed. Then he would go out back and disappear through the Bilko doors, down into the basement. This was a dark and scary place, and there may not have been a kid on earth who would have ventured down there. I waited patiently, and after some time, I’d see him, hoisting the Flexible Flyer wooden sleds up the steps and into the daylight. They were going up front and center to hang in the glittering windows. And so, for me this signaled that the holidays had begun.
Wishing all a wonderful holiday season, and I’m hoping that you, too, will take the opportunity to be an inspiration to others and make warm holiday memories.
Amy
Best wishes for a happy and healthy New Year!
B’Ann,
Moe, Susan, Kim, and David
In This Season of Light
A winter morning spills downy snow, warming the frozen landscape below, magic drifts through the chilling breeze
resting in serenity ~~ a Silent Night warm in luminous candle light; compassion, faith and Earthly peace
raise in voices rapt in emotion, sung in hymns of devout devotion, humanity seeking harmony ~~ above
angels hosting stars on high, heavenly bodies in a vaulted sky etched in this season of light
-Paulette Calasibetta
Invites you to join us throughout the month of December for a
Family Run Restaurant for Over 45 Years
With live music on Saturday, December 14th featuring a special holiday á la carte menu, cozy and warm atmosphere including a replace and a German band playing Christmas carols adding to the festivities. We open at 1:00, the band starts at 5pm and plays for 4 hours.
If you’re tired from all the holiday running around, relax with us CHRISTMAS EVE ON TUES., DECEMBER 24th from 3pm-8pm featuring a special holiday á la carte menu.
RING IN THE NEW YEAR Join us on New Year’s Eve. We’ll be open from 4pm-11pm and feature a special holiday á la carte menu.
WILD
GAME
DINNER
Annual event held on January 26, 2025 features an extensive cocktail hour and beautiful wild game bu et. $75.00 per ticket. Makes a Great Holiday Gift!
Around the Towns
Holiday
Through Mid-December
Season of Hope Toy Drive. Project Self-Sufficiency, Newton, NJ. To benefit over 2,500 children in Sussex and northern Warren Counties. Call 973.940.3500 about two-day toy shop in December. Info: www.project selfsufficiency.org.
Through December 31st
10 a.m.–6 p.m.
Handmade Holiday. Peters Valley School of Craft, Layton, NJ. Info: 973.948.5202, www.petersvalleygallery.org.
Through January 2nd
Small Works Exhibition. Sussex County Arts & Heritage Council, Newton, NJ. Opening reception: December 7th, 2:00–4:30 p.m. Info: 973.383.0027, www.scahc.org
November 30th
Saturday Noon–4 p.m.
Sleigh Rides. Honesdale, PA. Ten minute rides. One-horse open sleigh holds 4-6 people. $50 per ride. Hosted by Greater Honesdale Partnership. Pre-registration required. Info: 570.253.5492, visithonesdalepa.com.
1–4 p.m.
Bringing Santa Back. Back Road Brewing Co., Milford, PA. Hosted by GAIT Equine Assisted Services. Santa, face painting, games, the Grinch, touch a truck. Free. Info: 570.409.1140, gaittrc.org.
6 p.m.
Christmas Parade. Branchville, NJ. Trophies, food, music & drinks after the parade at the firehouse. Hosted by Branchville Hose Company No. 1. Info: bhc1christmas@ gmail.com, 862.354.3336.
November 30th–December 5th
11 a.m. & 1 p.m.
Holiday Mansion Tours. Grey Towers, Milford, PA. $10. Decorating by Grey Tower National Historic Site staff and the Milford Garden Club. Also December 9th–23rd and December 27th–30th. Info: 570.296.9630, greytowers.org
December 1st
Sunday 9:30 a.m.–2:00 p.m.
St. Nicholas Faire. St. Mary’s Most Sacred Heart Hall, Port Jervis, NY. Christmas crafts & vendors, raffles, bake sale. Info: 845.200.9411.
December 6th
Friday 10 a.m.–8 p.m.
Holiday Workshops. Cornell Cooperative Extension, Orange County, Middletown,
NY. Create holiday wreathes, kissing ball, tabletop tree. $50 each workshop, includes all materials. Registration required. Info: 845.344.1234, Ext. 240, www.cceorange county.org.
3:30–5:00 p.m.
Over and Under the Snow. Van Scott Nature Reserve, Beach Lake, PA. Reading of the story about what animals do when there’s snow on the ground, followed by craft making. $10. Registration required. Info: 570.226.3164, www.delawarehighlands.org.
6:30 p.m.
Hanna Q Dance Performance. St. Patrick’s Event Hall, Milford, PA. Enjoy contemporary/modern dance, wine, and food. $60. Info: www.hannaqdancecompanycom.
German Christmas Market. Sussex County Fairgrounds, Augusta, NJ. $7–$10. Raising funds to give back to the community. Info: 973.264.9336, www.germanchristmas marketnj.com.
The Nutcracker. Warwick Center for the Performing Arts, Chester, NY. Presented by the Warwick Dance Collective. Info: 845. 986.2466, warwickperformingarts.com.
December 7th
Saturday 10 a.m.–2 p.m.
Holly Day Fair. Dingman Delaware Elementary School, Dingmans Ferry, PA. Jewelry, wood crafts, ornaments & more. Music, Santa & Mrs. Claus. Presented by DDES PTA. Info: Facebook: DDES PTA.
Noon–5 p.m.
Handmade for the Holidays. Wallkill River Center for the Arts, Montgomery, NY. Local artisan craft fair. Info: 845.457.2787, wallkill.art.
1–7 p.m.
Light Up Milford. Milford, PA. Activities, tree lighting with Santa. Info: milfordpa.us.
1–9 p.m.
Goshen Christmas House Tour. Goshen, NY. Self-guided tour of Christmas decorations. Inside: 1–5 p.m. $40–$45, Outside: 5–9 p.m. $25–$30. Hosted by Catholic Charities Community Services of Orange and Sullivan. Info: 845.294.5124, www.cccsos.org
4–8 p.m.
Christmas Festival of Lights. Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church, Sparta, NJ. Children’s crafts, snacks, drinks, visit from Santa & Mrs. Clause. Donations of non-perishable pet food for Father John’s & Hopatcong Animal Shelter welcome. Info: 973.224.0986, www.sothnj.org.
December 7th–8th
Saturday–Sunday 11 a.m.–5 p.m.
Holiday Fineries at the Wineries. Shawangunk Wine Trail Wineries, NY. Self-guided wine tasting tour & wreath decorations. $50. Advance tickets only. Also December 14th–15th. Info: 845.256.8456, www.shawan gunkwinetrail.com.
1–4 p.m.
Old Fashioned Holiday Weekend Foster Armstrong House, Montague, NJ. Info: 973.293.3106, www.montaguehistorical. org, Facebook: Montague Assoc. for the Restoration of Community History (MARCH).
2:30–7:00 p.m.
Old Time Christmas. Quiet Valley Living Historical Farm, Stroudsburg, PA. $18. Also December 14th–15th. Info: 570.992.6161, www.quietvalley.org.
Craft Store Holiday Open House. Pike County Developmental Center, Milford, PA. Hand-crafted gifts, complimentary tea, coffee & desserts. Benefits participants of the PCDC. Info: 570.296.6319.
December 13th–15th
Friday–Sunday
Hawley Winterfest. Hawley, PA. Music, holiday fare, crafts, house tours, carriage rides & more. Hosted by Downtown Hawley Partnership. Info: 570.226.4064, www.visithawley pa.com.
December 14th
Saturday 9–11 a.m.
Eagle Watch Volunteer Training. Highlands Foundation Retreat Center, Milanville, PA. Followed by self-guided tour of the observation areas. Info: 570.226.3164, delaware highlands.org.
10 a.m.–4 p.m.
Winter Wonderland. Sussex County Fairgrounds, Augusta, NJ. Holiday gifts, tricky tray, pet adoptions. Hosted by Eleventh Hour Rescue. Info: 973.664.0865, ehrevents.org.
Noon
National Remembrance Day. Old Newton Burial Ground, Newton, NJ. To remember & honor veterans. Sponsored by the Sussex County Historical Society. Info: 973.383.0015.
3 p.m.
Holiday Concert. First Presbyterian Church, Hackettstown, NJ. Performance by Stone Soup Symphony. Free. Info: 908.509.1047, www.stonesoupsymphony.org.
Christmas Classics. United Methodist Church, Milford, PA. Performance by Delaware Valley Choral Society. Info: dvchoralsociety.org.
December 19th
Thursday 1–7 p.m.
Community Blood Drive. Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church, Sparta, NJ. To make an appointment, visit donate.nybc.org. Info: 973.729.7010, www.sothnj.org.
December 20th
Friday 8–10 p.m.
Twelve Twenty-Four Concert. Sugar Loaf Performing Arts Center, Chester, NY. Holiday rock orchestra concert. $35–$55. Info: 845.469.7000, www.sugarloafpacny.com
December 20th–22nd
Friday & Saturday 7 p.m.
Sunday 3 p.m.
Holiday Show. Marsh Hall, Port Jervis, NY. Songs, poems, stories. Presented by Presby Players. $10–$15. Facebook: Presby Players.
January 4th
Saturday 11 a.m.–3 p.m.
Eagle Watch Bus Tour. Winter Field Office, Lackawaxen, PA. Hosted by Delaware Highlands Conservancy. Scenic drive on heated bus. Also January 18th & 25th, February 1st, 15th & 22th. Reservations: 570.226.3164, delawarehighlands.org
January 5th
Sunday 1–3 p.m.
Winter Ecology Hike. PEEC, Dingmans Ferry, PA. Learn how plants & animals survive the winter. $5. Info: 570.828.2319, peec.org.
January 26th
Sunday 1–3 p.m.
Winter Survival. PEEC, Dingmans Ferry, PA. Learn the basics of outdoor survival and weather preparedness. $5. Also February 2nd. Info: 570.828.2319, www.peec.org.
February 8th
Saturday 9 a.m.–noon
Frozen Waterfall Tour. PEEC, Dingmans Ferry, PA. Visit falls in the Delaware Water Gap. $10. Info: 570.828.2319, www.peec.org.
February 15th
Saturday 8 p.m.
Abba Revisited. Sugar Loaf Performing Arts Center, Chester, NY. Musical journey back in time. $35–$55. Info: 845.469.7000, sugarloafpacny.com
Historic Forest Hall, situated at the corner of Broad Street and Harford, is one of the most architecturally magnificent and recognizable buildings in Milford, PA. The Pinchot family had endowed Yale University to start a graduate forestry school; the building housed the Yale School of Forestry’s summer Master’s program from 1904 to 1926.
Currently, Forest Hall, purchased by the Milford Hospitality Group, has been host to art exhibitions in the Forest Hall Studios. Set in the beautifully appointed second and third floors, the Winter Art Exhibition, curated by Kasia Lojewska, features three rooms of art on display: Side by Side, a combined exhibit of photography and sculptures by life partners and internationally acclaimed artists Joe DiMaggio and JoAnne Kalish; Wild Daughter, multimedia artist Eddy Segal’s paintings, sculptures, and fashion installations; and Echoes of the Outback, David Richard’s collection of contemporary Aboriginal art, which is featured in the Nature article in this issue of The Journal. We spoke with the artists.
The Journal: Could you tell us about your background and experience in the art world?
Joe DiMaggio: Six months ago, I was 20 years old. That’s the first line in my book, Fill the Frame.
Do I believe that? The answer is yes! A brief history: I took my first snapshot at age 7; sold my first photograph at 16; had my first real assignment at 19, photographing Peter, Paul & Mary; joined Time Life when I was 29; started my career as an advertising photographer and illustrator for the Fortune 500 at age 36.
I am the luckiest person in the world. I should have been dead, at least half a dozen times or more. Many of the greatest photographers helped me learn my craft and taught me everything I know. At age 65, I took two words out of my vocabulary. The words were “No” and “But.” I bitch, moan, and complain and love every day I’ve been on this planet!
I have a relatively short bucket list. I want to get a dozen images in MOMA before I go to that “Darkroom in the Sky.” In 1984 in L.A., I was a pool photographer for the International Olympic Committee. I would like to end
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my career the same way I started, as a wide-eyed, relatively innocent, amateur photographer. Health, happiness, and fun. Life is not a rehearsal.
JoAnne Kalish: I am an internationally known photographer. I was the first woman photographer hired by Sports Illustrated. I was the only photographer at the Long Beach Grand Prix, where I made the photograph of the famous near fatal shunt involving Mario Andretti and James Hunt. This was the year Andretti won the championship. The photograph appeared in that week’s Sports Illustrated issue and on the cover of the Year in Pictures. It was also used as a double truck spread in Andretti’s coffee table book, Andretti.
I’ve worked for numerous national and international publications, contributed to several large advertising campaigns, and my work is sold in over 60 countries around the world. My iconic photograph of artist Will Barnet, taken while on assignment for Arts & Antiques Magazine, is now in the permanent collection of the National Gallery of Art Portrait Gallery in Washington, DC. Will Barnet is the artist who was awarded the International Medal of Arts by President Obama. My portrait accompanies his work in galleries and museums around the world. This iconic photo is also used as the frontispiece in his retrospective book, Will Barnet at 100
Eddy Segal: I’m Eddy. I’m a painter, a sculptor, curator, and art director.
The Journal: Do you make your living from your art making?
Joe DiMaggio: The very simple answer to that question is that I have been a working photographer for over half a century, and yes, I’ve made my living from my art and photography, whether it be acrylic painting, collage, or any of my other art.
JoAnne Kalish: Yes, I make a living as a working photographer, as well as a visual artist.
Eddy Segal: I’ve been working as an artist since I was 15 years old. I’ve done a million other jobs besides—I’ve worked at magazines, been a nanny, a go-go dancer, bartender, sari saleswoman, barista, gallerina, curator, creative director, teacher, weed trimmer, and a rehab counselor—but finally art is my only gig.
The Journal: What are the advantages of working in Milford as opposed to a large, metropolitan area?
Joe DiMaggio: I was born and bred in Greenwich Village and maintained a studio in New York City in the photo district up
until 2002. I slowly shut down my studio and made a conscious decision to relocate to Milford. Milford is a sleepy, beautiful, small town. I believe at the time it was maybe 900 people. The bulk of my work still comes from New York City to London to Hong Kong, Australia, and back again. The art that I generated in Milford was specifically for me, and not anybody else. Please understand, I love Milford, and at this point I would never go back to NYC.
JoAnne Kalish: I like living in Milford. It’s a beautiful place, I have many friends here, and it’s more affordable than living in the city. I get to be around nature, which I greatly enjoy. My business has always been mainly editorial and advertising. The business of photography has changed greatly over the years. I no longer need to be in a large metropolitan area. I now generate art on my own. Things change, you move on and get with the times. Years ago, I would travel far on assignment and could be on the road for weeks; that usually is not the case anymore.
Eddy Segal: I split my time between a studio in Brooklyn and my Blue Barn here in Milford, and I was living in Mexico City and Los Angeles until recently. I think big cities are necessary to help you find your creative community and understand how you want to contribute to the cultural conversation of your time. But you also need
to find your peace, hear your own thoughts. Have space to make a mess. Milford is great for that. Whenever I’m away too long, I miss the trees.
The Journal: Have the internet and social media changed or influenced your work?
Joe DiMaggio: Honesty is the best policy. I didn’t think the internet was going to last three years. How’d that work out? Not so good. What I do with my camera, and what I do with my paint brush, believe it or not, has nothing to do with the internet. Is my work on the internet? Yes. My work at any given time is in 60 countries throughout the world through my agent. And yes, you use the internet for that. Facebook and Instagram are like little toys, it’s fun. I do not use it for marketing, just fun. I’m represented by Saatchi and Saatchi Art.
JoAnne Kalish: Of course, all these things changed the way I work. Let’s see… you no longer drop off a portfolio anymore; I have a website where people can see what I do (dimaggio-kalish.com). I’m represented by Saatchi Art, which reaches a large international audience of people, and am represented by stock agencies (mainly Getty these days) who have been selling my photographs over the internet and around the world for many years.
Nowadays, it’s getting to a point where there is just too much out there. Everyone is screaming for attention. Now that AI generated images are becoming more and more common, it is certainly another concern for artists. As a matter of fact, it’s a concern for all types of artists, not just visual ones. You change with the times, keep growing, and utilize what is out there to stay relevant.
Eddy Segal: Honestly, I hate social media, and I look forward to the day that I chuck my phone off a boat. But it generates sales and is a necessary part of being your own business. It is amazing to be able to connect with collectors and other creatives globally.
TJoAnne Kalish: People that collect my work or have purchased my work are from many different places, and yes, there are people who collect my work locally as well.
he Journal: Do people who collect your works live locally?
Joe DiMaggio: The people that collect my work come from many locales. Same thing with my students. At a typical New York City workshop, I’ve had students from New York; Rome, Italy; California; Baltimore; Boston. They come from all over. To the best of my knowledge, I’ve had one student from Milford.
A FEW WORDS WITH CURATOR KASIA LOJEWSKA
I came from Poland in 1992 as a young girl with one suitcase; I was filled with dreams and expectations of a better life.
Hard times create strong people. I’ve learned that from my experiences. My father used to say, “If you don’t have what you like, learn to love what you have.” As a furniture maker and passionate wood worker, he used to create things for us to adorn our modest and simple home. I realize now that his real message was to make something out of nothing. And I still live by that till this day. That’s how I started my business, by recycling and re-loving items from the past. My love for antiques started probably when I was 10 years old.
My antique store in the Lumberyard is not only the place where I curate and sell my creations, but it also has become a mecca that fills with people who are drawn to some kind of inspiration, a story, an atmosphere that just happened unexpectedly
Eddy Segal: My collectors live all over the world…I recently went to Greece to visit friends I haven’t seen in over a decade, and they had one of my earliest mixed media pieces in their home. It was so moving to me that this piece traveled home to home with them and has been part of their lives. That is the best part about people collecting your work. It’s an honor to get to be part of the fabric of someone’s story like that.
The Journal: How has living in Milford changed or influenced your work?
Joe DiMaggio: Obviously, by now you know I was not born and bred in Milford, PA, and Milford did not influence my work at Sports Illustrated, Time magazine, J Walter Thompson, etc. As far as the past four or five years, I’ve made a number of fine art sales in or around the Milford area.
and unintentionally, yet somehow exists. We talk, we connect, we exchange energies that probably would not happen anywhere else.
That is how I connected with David Richard first, then JoAnne Kalish and Joe DiMaggio and Eddy Segal. It all started with conversations about art and music, interpretations of today’s world. We are all different, we have different tastes and interests, but love for art connects us all. When I experience something good—food, music, beauty of a landscape—I have this urge to share it, so I had the idea of combining local talents and sharing it with the world.
I’m in love with Forest Hall. This building is enchanted and has such a beautiful soul. I reached out to Milford Hospitality Group’s Steve Rosado and spoke to him about creating something, although I did not have a ready plan, just a blurry idea, and he gladly took it from there. It was a huge step for me from redesigning someone’s kitchen to creating and hosting an exhibit.
Steve had no doubt (or at least he kept a poker face), and we created this exhibition with teamwork
What inspires me are the 50 magnificent photographers who helped me break into the business of photography. W. Eugene Smith being number one, Alfred Eisenstadt being number two, John Dominis being number three. Without their mentoring, I do not believe I would have gotten very far in the business of photography. I could be wrong.
JoAnne Kalish: I moved here from New York. I’m not sure I can say living in Milford has influenced my work. Being around other artist friends inspires me in just seeing how their creative process works. Not sure if this is relative to the question, but the pandemic, the many problems we are having in the world today, and the “bad news” has influenced my work recently. I began a new abstract series on “Happiness.” It’s colorful, upbeat and has been fun to make. It’s a direction I’ve not taken before.
Eddy Segal: Milford is always in my work; these woods shaped me. When I was younger my creative energy came more from rebellion. That has grown into a desire to share and amplify beauty, to create ecstatic spaces where people can feel free.
The Journal: What does the future hold? What’s next creatively?
Joe DiMaggio: The future? I only worry about today. Well… not exactly. As far as sports/action photography, I would like very much to end my career at the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028. To be honest, it’s a very long shot. When all else fails, I go to Shohola Falls, which is my church. I pray, meditate, and remember to say the serenity prayer.
JoAnne Kalish: Not sure what the future holds at the moment, hopefully some great things will come out of doing this show. I’m thinking of doing another playful series. However, haven’t figured out how to totally pull it off—so we shall see. I do know having more empty space in the studio makes me want to start something new.
Eddy Segal: I want to, as always, continue to dive deep into my creative practice and push myself to make whatever work needs to be made. I was telling myself that I am done moving, but I can never stay in one place very long. I go wherever the next project is. But always come home to Milford.
and incredible people, in an incredible place, and with an incredible audience!
My hope for Forest Hall is that it continues the glamorous life it deserves and for Milford to continue to gather interesting people for different cultural events as it always has. That’s what brought me here from Brooklyn eight years ago, experiencing culture and nature without spending half of my life stuck in traffic.
And we still learn. I learn from my magnificent children. They are my inspiration in so many different ways…it’s a beautiful circle. I taught them how to walk; they are teaching me how to walk with pride in where I come from, who I am, what I deserve. We need art and love, not wars and misery. We need to get together.
We need to dance. We need to sing. We need forums. We need to talk and argue in respectful ways. Nobody is perfect …but art is. Let’s take it from here and let’s continue the history of Milford. Maybe we can put our differences aside and become stronger together.
Photo courtesy of Kasia Lojewska
By Joseph Hamway
Pecan Tassies
Memories from My Mother’s Kitchen
That scent of butter and sugar, toasted pecans, and the delicate dusting of powdered sugar in the air signaled the arrival of Christmas in our house. Was it the traditional music? Or the decorations around town that told me the holidays had begun? No—it was the smell of my mother’s pecan tassies baking in the oven.
Tucked away in the small hamlet of Long Valley, where I grew up and still live, winters felt like something out of a snow globe or painting. You could see icicles hanging from tree branches, ponds freezing over, and Schooley’s Mountain blanketed in a layer of soft, untouched snow. At home, though, it was warm, thanks in part to my mother, Cora, who was toiling in the kitchen. My mother, the daughter of two Italian immigrants, has always
brought a love of food into every room she enters. She really believes in the magic of cooking—the way it can bring people together, wrap them in a sense of comfort, and somehow make the world seem kinder. She has an undeniable passion for it. And during the holidays, the kitchen became the heartbeat of our home.
Mom’s pecan tassies were legendary in our family and beyond. Little bites of heaven, these buttery, bite-sized tarts crammed with pecan filling were the kind of treat that could transport you with just one taste. Friends, neighbors, and even teachers at school looked forward to receiving the small holiday tins handed out by my older brother and me every year. They were the first sign that Christmas had arrived, a harbinger of warmth, joy, and indulgence.
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Those cookies became a ritual, a tradition that felt as old as the holiday itself. I can still envision my mother standing at the counter, her apron dusted with flour, rolling out the dough with practiced hands. Each one was made with care, the dough pinched into perfect little cups before being filled with a sweet, nutty mixture of pecans, brown sugar, and butter. The smell of pecans toasting in the oven was enchanting. I can still smell it now. That fragrance filled the house, lingering long after the last batch had been pulled out of the oven.
My favorite part, though, was the powdered sugar! After the bites had cooled just enough, my mom would sift a cloud of powdered sugar over each one—like light snowfall, a flurry that seemed to glow in the soft light of our kitchen. That kitchen has since been remodeled: walls repainted, appliances rearranged, and the old oven replaced. It’s interesting to think about, but the room is still here, just in a new form. I would stand beside her, eyes wide, watching the sugar fall, knowing that soon I might be able to sneak one in before they were packed away onto the plates or trays she prepared for family gatherings.
The taste of those pastries was like nothing else. The pastry was soft and crumbly, melting in your mouth almost instantly, while the pecan filling gave off this rich, buttery sweetness that was perfectly balanced by the subtle crunch of the nuts. And the powdered sugar—it stuck to your lips. They were so rich; you’d think one or two would be enough. But that was never the case. Everyone always reached for another, and another.
Back then, when I was a kid, the snacks felt like the pinnacle of the Yuletide season. They embodied everything Christmas was supposed to be—warm, inviting, and full of love. And though my mom made plenty of other holiday treats—gingerbread cookies, pignoli cookies, and toffee barks—it was those pecan delectables that held a special place in literally everyone’s hearts. There was something magical about them–something that made them feel that they are meant for a special occasion, even though the ingredients were simple, maybe because they’re my mom’s favorite to make!
As the years have gone on, I’ve noticed that my mom doesn’t make the desserts quite as often as she used to…
Maybe it’s the passage of time, or maybe it’s just that life moves faster than it once did. But sometimes, every now and then, when the holidays roll around, she’ll make a batch of pecan tassies, just for old times’ sake. And every time I bite into one, I’m shot back to those innocent Christmases in Long Valley—pacing in our kitchen, watching my mother work her magic.
It’s always really interesting to watch my mom work effortlessly in the kitchen, especially around the holidays. It gives me this behind-the-scenes look into her childlike wonder and the joy she finds in cooking, a true passion of hers.
As a kid, I vividly remember tearing open presents, playing with toys and video games, lost in the magic of the season. I would then see my mother’s joy come alive through her holiday cooking, with family gathering around the table. She always looked forward to presenting food and feeding people.
I knew my mom had a really tough upbringing, dealing with a lot of pressure as the youngest and only daughter in her family. I’ve found that very inspiring as she always follows her heart, fights for what she wants, and she never
let anything stop her from growing into the woman she’s become. It’s amazing to taste and feel her passion translated into something as simple as the Christmas cookies she makes.
When I was growing up, I definitely don’t think I fully appreciated and absorbed the power and love in my mom’s cooking, but now I realize it’s a part of our history. I hope I will uncover the cooking genes as I grow older!
So, even now, when I see a pecan tassie, I’m instantly hit with a flashback of these memories. The mini pies somehow symbolize a branch of my childhood, mom’s love, and the joy that only Christmastime can bring. My mom’s baking reminds me that, even as life changes, the important things—family, tradition, and the simple pleasures of some homemade cookies—remain the same.
As long as there’s a plate of pecan tassies on the kitchen counter, I know that Christmas has truly come.
Joseph Hamway is a journalism student at Centenary University in Hackettstown, NJ.
By Teresa Weeden Gurdineer
Minisink Heritage Museum
What’s in Carol’s Cabin?
No one can say for sure just when, or by whom, the suggestion was first made to compile the history of the Town of Minisink. In the early 1980’s, as the bicentennial of the Town’s founding drew near, many in the community with a sense of history–both officials and residents–realized that this would be an occasion to mark. Minisink has had a rich background, as interesting and as colorful as its natural landscape. From an early pioneering frontier to a prosperous agricultural region to a gracious residential community, this has been a place that evokes identity and pride in the people who live here. Moreover, a wealth of material relating to that heritage has been saved and is available in the Town archives.
Accordingly, on October 13, 1982, the Minisink Town Board created a commission and authorized it to research, document and preserve the Town’s history. One of the principal tasks of that twelve-member Bicentennial Commission was to publish a book, and in 1983 a committee was named to research and write it. All were volunteers…teacher, housewife, farmer, town clerk…none was a professional writer. It was a cooperative effort of the committee, plus contributions from many other people of the community.
The research was the biggest job. Dedicated Town fathers had preserved countless Town records: tax assessments, vital statistics, military rolls, jury lists, school records, slave books and cattle brands. There was also a surprising number of personal family documents to be found, once people became aware of the project: diaries, day books, professional journals, letters, photographs, wills and deeds.
From Minisink: A Bicentennial History, pages IX and X
The Town of Minisink encompasses the hamlets of Johnson, Westtown, and the Village of Unionville in Orange County, NY. In 1988, the town celebrated its 200th year anniversary and town dignitaries, with an eye to connecting the past to the future, buried a time capsule near the flagpole that sits next to the Minisink Municipal Center. The plan is for it to be opened in 2088.
With all of the excitement and local chatter about collected Minisink memorabilia, it became obvious to many that a museum was needed to archive and share cherished memories for residents and visitors. Thus, in 1988, a project was started to proudly display local artifacts, stories, and family research materials. Today, the Minisink Heritage Commission has four buildings, known as the Town of Minisink Heritage Museum and Research Center, all containing separate focuses on Minisink life and history.
The Bicentennial Room was the first to be built. One can see memorabilia from the military and veterans; archaeological artifacts; exhibits from government, politics,
and businesses; as well as artifacts from our medical, railroad, and agricultural communities. There is an education section, presenting objects from our one- and tworoom schoolhouses and the centralization of Minisink Valley Central School. Organizations displayed include the Minisink Grange #907, Lenape Ambulance Corp., Minisink Hose Co., Rutgers Engine Co., and the American Legion Post 1607 of Unionville.
The church section includes items from the Westtown Presbyterian Church (1803) and the Unionville Presbyterian Church (1825). Artifacts from the Orange Baptist Church of Unionville, the Rome Church, Waterloo Church, Methodist Church of Westtown, Unionville Methodist Episcopal Church, Johnson Union Church, and our Lady of the Scapular in Unionville are also on display.
The Westtown Methodist Church was organized in 1863 and was taken down in the late 1940s, but the pipe organ was given to the Westtown Presbyterian Church where it was proudly housed for many years, prior to being donated to the Minisink Heritage Museum.
The second building, Larry Hansen’s Heritage Hall, was an addition to the Bicentennial Room, as more donations were received from Minisink residents. The hall is named after Laurence Hansen of Westtown, NY. Larry spent over 30 years as museum curator. Sadly, he passed away in 2022, and in his honor, our curators continue to gather and display new donations.
This area includes original artifacts from local businesses, such as early grist mills. There are items from mills salvaged from Millsburg in Wawayanda and from the Kimber Fort Farm near the New Jersey state line. Early settlements were established near the mills operating by water
power. The larger mills ground grain into flour for home use. The miller often accepted a portion of the flour for his services. Other mills sawed lumber, churned butter, and carded wool.
Bee keeping, maple syrup, surveying, and farming essentials are on display, including the Hay Fork, which was Westtown resident Emmett V. R. Gardner’s patented invention, manufactured in 1887.
One full corner of this hall is dedicated to the American Silk Label Co., which was established in 1875 in New York City. In 1919, the company purchased the Unionville Toner and Prescott Silk Label Co. The purchase was a major factor in Unionville’s growth. Silk designers and weavers relocated with their families from Europe and from large East Coast cities in New York and New Jersey. In 1964, the production of clothing labels was expected to reach two million units per year. Endless varieties of patterns were woven on the sixty looms by 130 employees, using 187 different colors. By 1975, the 40,000-square-foot plant employed 150 people who ran seventy-five looms. The plant was closed in 1986. Exhibits include samples of the silk labels produced and photos of the looms and employees of the company.
The Minisink Life History Barn, a third building, was erected to display farming tractors, agricultural equip-
Grandma Weeden’s Kitchen. Bottom: Feed Mill.
ment. and everyday artifacts of Minisink life. A corner of this building has been built out as a replica of local blacksmith shops, containing tools and photographs from Gardnerville, Unionville, and Westtown blacksmiths.
Peter C. Hanford moved his family to Unionville in 1839 and opened a blacksmith and wagon shop on Main Street. By 1865, Nathan C. and J. Harvey joined their father, Peter, and the business became Hanford & Sons. A Hanford wagon, purchased by the John McMullen Family Farm in the late 1800s, sits among other artifacts.
In the back corner of the Life History Barn is a replica of a 1930s kitchen that was built in memory of Jennie Clark Weeden, one of Minisink’s centenarians.
The fourth and final building, Carol’s Cabin, is significant for many reasons.
Over the last 40 years of compiling family memories, the need to archive our photographs, stories, maps, artwork, family genealogy, and historical documents became a priority. The dream of Carol’s Cabin was to showcase the endeavors of Minisink and Unionville historians, Heritage Museum curators, and Heritage Commission
Carol Ford Van Buren, an avid genealogist, was the Minisink Town Historian for twelve years from 2001 to 2013, and she was the founder of the annual community event, Minisink Heritage Days. Carol was instrumental in the construction of the Heritage Center Log Cabin and the expansion of our town museums. In memory of all of her dedication to Minisink History, the Heritage Center Log Cabin was named Carol’s Cabin.
Local families continue to support and donate documented history that is included in the over 10,000 family card files and family genealogy files, which can be seen in the Carol’s Cabin Research Center.
Teresa Weeden Gurdineer has been Town of Minisink Historian since 2013 and Village of Unionville Historian since 2021. The Town of Minisink Heritage Commission, the Town of Minisink, and the Village of Unionville sponsor tours of the museum for individuals and groups by appointment only.
For more information, email visitcarolscabin@gmail.com, call 845.726.4148, or visit the Minisink Heritage Commission Facebook page. Join us for annual events including Heritage Days on the first Saturday of June and the Fall Farm Festival on the first Saturday of October.
Nutcracker. Photos courtesy of the Centenary Stage Company
A Lesson in Cultural Arts
The Centenary Stage Company
The dome rises above Hackettstown, NJ, visible from every direction, and has ever since the current Edward W. Seay Administration Building was erected to replace the Centenary Collegiate Institute, a massive five-story building that was consumed in a huge fire on Halloween night 1899.
In those years, Centenary was a prep school. It later became a junior college for women. Just as it was transitioning to a four-year college, the administration decided the school should be a location for the cultural arts in Northwest New Jersey.
William Goeckeler was the professor in charge of that movement. He created the Centenary Performing Arts Guild, which included classes in music, dance, and theatre and a film series, as well as student productions.
Carl Wallnau served as an adjunct under Goeckeler starting in 1982, teaching drama classes and producing shows in the Little Theatre on the lower level of the Seay. Two years later, Wallnau was touring with a play when Goeckeler called to tell him he was leaving. The program was
slated to be cut, but Goeckeler wanted to at least leave a caretaker in his place.
So Wallnau, now the longest serving faculty member at the university, became artistic director of the Performing Arts Guild.
“Ken Powell, the vice president for academic affairs at the time, was a music person. He respected artists and believed the arts were important for the community, as well as the school,” Wallnau explained in a recent interview in his office at the university, a small room full of mementos and props from years of Centenary theatre.
Powell put Wallnau in charge of the 174-seat theatre— with no technical theatre person and no booker.
“We produced stuff,” he laughed.
For the 1985–86 season, he decided the theatre needed to join the union. They contacted Actors Equity as a Small Professional Theatre Contributor in Development. “Our first play was Blithe Spirit, and we grew from there,” he Continued on next page
said. The guild hired designers and builders. “The first season we did $7,000 in ticket sales, but we were doing it.”
Because an Equity Theatre needs its own name, the Centenary Stage Company was born.
And Then It Happened
One thing that helped Centenary Stage Company for the first few years was the media climate in North Jersey in those days.
“The Star-Ledger and the New Jersey section of The New York Times, both covered us,” Wallnau said. Since the Times published its New Jersey section only on Sundays, they couldn’t run reviews if a play only ran for two weeks. “So we switched to three weeks.”
The next thing that happened proved to be a godsend for the theatre.
Ed Coyne, a long-time jazz enthusiast, approached Wallnau about a summer jazz festival in the Little Theatre. Coyne ended up paying for the installation of air conditioning and the renovation of the Little Theatre. And the jazz has continued and expanded to Jazz in January.
A theatre major was added to Centenary’s curriculum, and students were given the opportunity to work in Equity shows. Soon, Lia Antolini-Lid was hired to teach dance and musical theatre. The school now has a 20-credit dance minor for theatre majors and others.
Another addition to the staff was Michael Blevins who formed the Young Performers Workshop for children 8 to 18. Blevins is a director and choreographer who has worked on Broadway and with many top professionals. The program offers 15 weeks of theatre training for beginning, intermediate, and advanced students, culminating in a performance, often of a major musical.
The Little Theatre is no longer the only option for productions, although it is still busy. It is used for student and Youth Performance Workshop performances.
On Oct. 8, 2010, the David and Carol Lackland Center opened its doors, giving the stage company a new theatre and much more. Carol Lackland, a Centenary graduate, and her husband, David, made a substantial donation to the college for the creation of the new building.
The Sitnik Theatre has 485 seats, making larger productions possible and creating a space for area groups to hold major lectures. It also provided a permanent home for the annual production of The Nutcracker by the North Jersey Civic Youth Ballet. Previous Nutcrackers had been held everywhere, from a middle school to an old Vaudeville House.
Smaller shows are performed in the black box theatre, the Edith Bolle Kutz Theatre. It can be arranged in the round as it was for a production of Hitler’s Tasters, a play about the young women who sampled Hitler’s food, or as an intimate venue as it was for the one-man show about the Vietnam war, The Things They Carried.
The Lackland Center also contains a 400-seat dining hall, 55-seat café, dance studio, classrooms, and meeting rooms, as well as the offices of WNTI streaming radio and CCTV Channel 23. Wallnau pointed out that the larger space allows much more elaborate productions, but they are also much more expensive.
Wallnau, who had worked with the Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival, consulted on the layout of the building, including the placement of shops and the layout of the audience space.
Women at Work
The Women’s Playwright Series has become a popular mainstay of the Centenary Stage Company.
Program founder Catherine Rust said she and Wallnau started talking about how few productions by women were available back in the 1990s. “Only 5% of the plays produced across America were by women,” she noted. “They needed a place to work, to develop their voice.” Centenary, under Rust’s direction, started providing that place.
“We need women’s stories, women driving the plot line, solving the problems.” She characterized many male-dominated stories as reducing plot to fight or flight, whereas women bring in another way of looking at situations.
Rust recalled that there was one play the first year, with six people in the audience for the reading. Then three plays the next year with one chosen for full production on the Main Stage. Now the series gets plays from all over. Feedback is welcome, actually invited, she said. The audience should feel they are helping with the creation.
The women whose plays are featured have moved on to bigger things, according to Rust. Some are in Hollywood, one is writing libretti for operas. Bekah Brunstetter, perhaps the most famous of the series veterans, wrote and produced the hit television show This is Us and cowrote the Broadway musical The Notebook.
Producing the plays does cost money, but funding has been provided by Laura Baron, a long-time contributor to the theatre for many years along with her late husband, Norman.
Carl Knows Everybody
Centenary also plays host to outside performers, some of whom are very famous, leading to the comment, “Carl Continued on page 36
The Weir
knows everybody,” being heard around campus and town.
Wallnau denies that, but he does attend Association of Performing Arts Presenters events where he is able to cultivate relationships with a lot of professionals who are impressed with the fact Centenary is only an hour from New York.
One of those celebrities was tap dance icon Tommy Tune who was celebrating his 50th anniversary performance in New York City and had a chance to travel to Hackettstown with the Manhattan Rhythm Kings where he presented a performance based on the stages of his career. A college-aged tapper in the front row said she felt he was doing the whole show just for her.
Broadway star Betty Buckley so loved coming to Centenary that she would place in her contract the ability to take a day off from a show to venture into Warren County.
Each year, musical performances throughout the summer season help fund the work of the CSC. “I don’t want money to be the reason people don’t go to the theatre,” Wallnau said. He pointed out the reasonable prices and special family rates and discounts for Hackettstown residents. “We try to keep the ticket prices below that of community theatre,” he added.
In addition, Centenary theatre students have so many opportunities to perform, not only in their own productions, but in Equity shows. “We will have more than 20 students in A Christmas Carol this year,” Wallnau pointed out.
He estimates there are between 40 and 45 theatre majors at any given time, including all of the concentrations. Theatre Management is an interdisciplinary concentration with business courses, including social media and communications. Dance features technique classes in ballet, jazz, modern, theatre dance, and movement, as well as choreography and dance appreciation. Theatre is also a concentration in the education department, for both elementary and high school teaching. Performance studies include acting workshops and classes in design, technical theatre, stage management, dance, lighting, and set design.
In addition, there is a musical theatre concentration for both performance and production/technical studies. The production management major includes management, design, and technical skills.
Youthful Voice
The students also get the chance to perform with the Young Audience Series, which brings live theatre experiences and hands-on workshops to young people.
Children come to Centenary, and the students take their shows on the road all around the tri-state region. They present musical works and adaptations of children’s books appropriate for K-4th grade.
Another project has theatre students performing and leading workshops on segments of Shakespeare plays and character studies in Shake It Up Shakespeare: Magic, Mystery, and Mayhem.
Of course, the COVID lockdown had an impact on Centenary, but audiences are returning, Wallnau said. He admits he and his wife, Colleen Smith Wallnau, were seen on stage more than they normally were during COVID. (Wallnau likes to act there no more than once every two years.)
Wallnau adds that the local audiences aren’t necessarily adventurous and so CSC has to do some “safe” productions, but “it can’t be just about selling tickets. We have to inspire, educate and entertain.” He notes, “Our core 500 people will come out for everything.”
“Every year’s a journey.”
THE VOLUNTEERS
It takes a village to raise a theatre, or at least a group of volunteers.
Art Charlton, public information director for Warren County in his day job, is president of the Citizens Advisory Board.
“We assist however we can,” he said. “One of our member coordinates the volunteers at the door at each of the plays. Others do promotion. Another reaches out to area libraries about books relating to the subject of the latest play or by the same author.”
There is no set membership of the advisory board, he explained. About 13 serve right now. “We’ve been smaller and larger over the years.”
The board was founded by Catherine Rust, for many years general manager of the Centenary Theatre and founder of its Women’s Playwright Series. Some of the board members are parents of former Young Performers Workshop students. A few others worked at the college.
Some took on the board as a volunteer post-retirement “job,” including the late Elizabeth Gordon of Heath Village who brought vast enthusiasm and a unique sense of style to the group. She rarely missed a performance and introduced the theatre to many of the friends she made when she moved to the retirement community.
Dr. Sherri Talbot-Valerio
My Country by Kudditji Kngwarreye. Opposite page: Kakadu Rock
Art.
Photos courtesy of David Richard
From Land to Hand Dreamtime Art
The land. It lies at the center of Australian Aboriginal culture, spirituality, and art. It also figures prominently in my memories from the two dozen or more trips I have made to the land “Down Under” over the past thirty years.
Most of my time in Australia was spent in Canberra, Australia’s capital city, which was built as a political compromise, located nearly midway between Sydney and Melbourne. Many trips also involved destinations along the coast. However, I have also toured the Red Centre half a dozen times, its florid outback sands and chiseled mountains and rock formations defining a landscape like no other in the world.
It was here that I first became acquainted with citizens of the First Nations, the natives of this harsh land. During these visits, on a personal level and through subsequent study, I acquired a working knowledge of their history, culture, and traditions, their hardships in the modern era, and, most particularly, their ancient and contemporary art.
Echoes of the Outback, my unique collection of contemporary Aboriginal art, is currently on display at Forest Hall Studios in Milford, PA. To understand this art is to understand the cultural connection to the land.
Paleolithic anthropologists tell us that the human history of Australia began approximately 50,000 years ago when southeast Asian homo sapiens seafarers navigated the Pacific Ocean to the then-joined land mass of Australia and New Guinea. This major sea crossing rates as one of the greatest achievements of early humans and seeded the population of the Australian continent.
shores, he marveled at the stewardship of the native population in maintaining their park-like bush forests. This accords with a larger spiritual vision of Aboriginal tribes as stewards of their lands rather than predators upon them.
The cultures of First Nations peoples vary according to their local environments, dependent on the available food sources and micro-climates. In every tribal group, however, a reverence for the land and the local flora and fauna is evident and central to both spiritual tradition and practice.
The creation myth of “The Dreamtime” is universal, although colorfully varied, across the continent. This is considered to be an ancient time when all things were empty and void, and Dreamings of Ancestral Spirits, whether human-like or animal-like, brought everything into existence. As well, specific Dreamings and totems were passed to each tribe in accord with their locality and its food sources. Thus, the Dreamtime is considered to be a continuous process unfolding in the everyday lives of the people as they relate to the dreamed creation around them.
By oral tradition, the principles guiding daily life were also given to each tribe by the Ancestral Spirits. These established spiritual rituals and maintained order among the people while also providing guidance for living in harsh environments in which early European explorers could not survive. Examples include marriage rules, where and how to find water and food, how to care for the land, and how to function and share within a tribal, kin-based society.
Much has changed since this migration. Rising sea levels have wiped out evidence of the first colonies, and the megafauna that once co-inhabited the land has vanished, likely through human predation. Yet the Aboriginal people have also cared for the land and have generally hunted and gathered within the limits of their local ecology. Through controlled burns of outback bush and gum forests, they have contributed to the cycle of soil fertility and, until recently, limited the extensive wildfires that once ravaged the continent.
When Captain James Cook first landed on Australian
The European colonization of Australia brought great challenges and hardships to the native Aboriginal population. Rather than being stewards of the land, Europeans brought the concept of land ownership and systematically encroached on lands sacred to the First Nations peoples. Nor was this process peaceful. Books, such as Blood on the Wattle, document many of the atrocities that occurred across the continent. This history is eerily similar to America’s displacement of its Native Indian tribes, documented in books such as Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee.
An additional hardship was the displacement of Aboriginal culture, which European settlers deemed to be inferior
Continued on next page
to their own. First, Christian ministers and priests arrived to establish missions to “educate” and convert the native population according to their own doctrines. Later, several generations of Aboriginal children were actually taken from their families and tribes and raised by white foster parents according to Anglo-Saxon traditions and values. This occurred from 1910 onward until as recently as 1970. It was only in 2008 that AU Prime Minister Kevin Rudd offered a formal apology to Australia’s Indigenous peoples, particularly the Stolen Generations.
I have visited many of the ancient cave and rock art sites in Australia, marveling at the visions and evocations of these works as well as, in many cases, their technical proficiency. One trip to Kakadu National Park in Northern Australia with my mentor and friend, John Diamond, MD, and his wife, Susan, was particularly memorable.
The park has one of the world’s greatest concentrations of rock art sites. Some paintings are up to 20,000 years old, which makes the artwork one of the longest historical records of any group of people on Earth. We were able to view these works up-close in order to extensively photograph them. Unfortunately, our trip was cut short by a major spill of tailings from a nearby uranium mine. Like most others, we fled. The contrast between primitive and “civilized” culture never seemed more obvious—or toxic.
In addition to rock art, early Aboriginal artists painted on bark, wood, and on their own bodies, in addition to drawing figures in the sand and clay. Powdered ochre of various hues—red, yellow, white, and orange—are the source of most color in these paintings, while black is often rendered from charred wood.
All of these early works are abstract, yet also representational, again relating to spiritual aspects of the Dreamtime and its particular manifestations. The footprints of a local bird may wander across one painting while a serpent winds through the terrain of another.
My main acquaintance with Aboriginal culture has been through its contemporary art, largely on the grassy community lawns of Alice Springs in the Northern Territory. Together with Dr. Diamond and Susan, we met many artists who drove into town and painted in small groups there. While initially cautious, those artists remain friendly and grateful to travelers who purchase their works, especially for a fair price. Art has been a salvation to many individuals who might otherwise fall into economic and social despair, the forced decline of once proud and entirely self-sufficient people.
During these visits, we also had the opportunity to meet Aboriginal art gallery owners and learn about their working relationship with the artists. Most impressive were those who knew their artists as friends and working colleagues.
Beginning in 2007, I’ve collected contemporary Aboriginal art on my many trips to the Red Centre, after passing through Alice Springs. Contemporary First Nations art is similar to its ancient antecedents in subject matter and stylized imagery. However, the color schemes of contemporary art are typically bright and varied, contrasting to the ochre earth tones of traditional works.
Also, an iconic dot style has dominated native art of the last half of the twentieth century, a style largely taught to the Aboriginals beginning at the mission in Hermannsburg. The repetitive technique involved made this style both teachable and appealing, largely to a tourist market. It also helped the artists tell their stories and regain selfsufficiency within the context of a modern Anglo-centered society.
Fortunately, many Aboriginal artists have more recently cultivated a wide variety of personal styles and techniques, which have greatly expanded the range of contemporary works now available.
As a result, the contemporary Aboriginal art market has flourished. For example, a 2008 exhibition of works by the fine Aboriginal artist Emily Kame Kngwarreye was attended by more visitors at Tokyo’s National Art Center than an earlier exhibition presenting a collection of works by renowned French Impressionist Claude Monet.
Many works of contemporary Aboriginal art have a nearmesmerizing quality, the patterns and swirling forms of each leading the eye in an endless dance. Underlying this dance is always some form of spiritual vision, some connection to the Dreamtime through the artist’s own land.
The primacy of the Dreamtime is reflected in the names of many contemporary paintings: Bush Yam Dreaming, Rainbow Serpent Dreaming, or Fire Dreaming, for example. The land is reflected in the names of other contemporary works, such as those of Kudditji Kngwarreye (1938–2017), who gave all of his paintings the same name, My Country.
All Aboriginal art, ancient and contemporary, thus returns to the land. To an early European explorer, and even to a modern tourist such as me, this unfamiliar terrain seems inhospitable, its climates extreme, and its dearth of water, food, and shelter daunting. However, this naïve perspective seems mere foolishness to Australia’s natives for whom this land and its clime, along with all of its inhabitants, are sacred, bountiful, and alive.
The loss of traditional Aboriginal culture and spirituality within two and half centuries of European colonization is inestimable. Yet preservation of traces of this heritage, through abstract representation in contemporary First Nations artwork, may offer the rest of us an intimation of the Dreamtime, this amazing land, and its many spirited inhabitants.
Left: Kudditji Kngwarreye. Right:
Left
Aries (March 20-April 19) –The Sun’s annual transit through Sagittarius is a time when you experience a different side of your nature. It is equally valid, though a whole other shade of psyche. In lived reality, there is a self who you think of as you, and there is a self who you think of as the you in relationships. They are different faces that you present to existence, and they each have their own properties. Each has its own inner experience. Ultimately, one must emerge as dominant.
Taurus (April 19-May 20) – The Sun’s movement through Sagittarius is making you conscious of your most intimate partnerships. Yet one thing you may not be aware of is a power struggle that is brewing just off-stage. You may feel like you want to challenge someone but you don’t know exactly why that is. There is something deeper going on, and its roots go much further back in time than any present relationship. This may provide the context you need.
Gemini (May 20-June 21) – The coming weeks are an important turning point in your ability to take care of yourself, and to resolve matters associated with a personal healing project. Yet this is more than about any one issue; your chart describes deepening your commitment to wellness as the most important thing in your life. You are made of strong material. You can endure a lot. The goal now is to endure less, and to be at peace with yourself.
Cancer (June 21-July 22) – You are a passionate person, and you must live passionately. You and your feelings must be free to exist on your own terms. If you are in a situation that does not facilitate your desires, then it’s time to rethink that. Right versus wrong are not issues so much as honest versus dishonest; sincere versus faking it. So be mindful of your agreements, and ask yourself if one of them is to be honest. That, ultimately, is your passport to freedom.
Leo (July 22-Aug. 23) – Leo is the sign of the Sun and the source of all light in our solar system. People know you as outwardly directed, and bold about taking leadership when that’s necessary. Yet this is the time of year when you tend to recall yourself into a deep inner space. Your introverted and emotional nature reveals itself to you. I encourage you to follow your desire to have more solitude, and to offer no explanations about why you feel the way you do.
Virgo (Aug. 23-Sep. 22) – While you would rather think things through and document your thought process with impeccable logic, there is a side of you that is thrown by your emotions like a bubble of seaweed in the crashing surf. Yet once you know about this aspect of your nature and how it tends to work — the tides, while imperfect, are predictable — you will be much more at peace with yourself. It helps to ride out any turbulence without trying to go into mental override mode and create the illusion of control by making arbitrary decisions.
Libra (Sep. 22-Oct. 23) – Your financial superpower is understanding people. It’s been said that the Earth is the source of all wealth, and I would say that it’s understanding people’s motives. They are more often driven by their emotional desires than by their physical necessities. And once you know that, you will find it much easier to offer them what you have. To do this, you have to be curious and you need self-confidence; and you need to trust yourself. That’s another way of saying being honest all around, and never taking unfair advantage of someone.
Scorpio (Oct. 23-Nov. 22) – What does it mean to ‘get a new start’? It’s about making a decision followed by changing your approach to your existence. This includes how you see yourself and see the world. Learning is the discovery that something is possible, which means possible for you. You seem be at a crux point, where you’ve had enough of something — in yourself. You have a diversity of options for how to work this out, but you have to want to — and you have to choose.
Sagittarius (Nov. 22-Dec. 22) – As a Sagittarius, your passion and emotions, your drive to connect, make you want to go deep into experimental places. You know you’re a visitor here, and showed up to have all the experiences available only on Earth. Those who live full-spectrum won’t be content with littleness, or with people telling them what to do. If you want to live boldly, let yourself out — all of you. Love yourself for doing it. Honesty is the only requirement.
Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 20) – The thing being churned up is your insecurities. Everyone has a few of those, and yours center on one primary theme: will the people who surround you accept you for who you are? As time has moved on, the fundamental tension of your life is between your need to be absolutely who you are, and your fear that you will be rejected for doing so. Still, you have no choice but to be yourself, regardless of what others think — or what you think they think.
Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb. 19) – What do you want to accomplish? I suggest that rather than considering your concept of what this is, reflect on your actions as the most reliable indication of your intentions. Choosing to act on what you say you want is an experiment. It’s also a challenge to yourself, and that involves the daring step of declaring your life to be your own by acting on your needs and desires. Be patient with yourself, and look for the sources of internal resistance.
Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20) – I would encourage you to actually feel what you are feeling, and to make the space to freely want what you want. And then — within the terms of your own ethics — you are free to do whatever you want. The important thing is that you conduct yourself in a way that is appropriate for you. That specifically excludes the rules and morals that others would place on you, and living life on your own terms. It is essential that you do your own inquiry.
