Everyone agrees that the Wassaic Project 2011 Summer Festival was one of the best weekends of the year! Attendees described the event as “magical,” “mind-blowing,” and “great beyond my ability to describe.” Over two thousand people joined together in Wassaic to celebrate Art, Music, Dance, Film, and Creative Writing.
Caged Animals playing the Luther Barn Stage on Friday night, photo by Grant Cornett
The festivities began on Thursday night, with a successful community fundraiser for the Wassaic Volunteer Fire Department. Breanne Trammell and Bowie Zunino hosted a Cake Walk and the band Creation rocked out at the nearby Lantern Inn. The Festival kicked off in earnest on Friday with a packed house for the dance and music performances. Dancers from the Earl Mosely Institute of the Arts wowed audiences and Friday night headliner band Free Blood had so much fun they jumped off the stage and sang amongst the boisterous crowd!
"Let It Ride" choreographed by Earl Mosely, performed by dancers from the Earl Mosely Institute for the Arts on Friday evening on the Maxon Mills Porch, photo by Grant Cornett
On Saturday, rain dampened the earth but not the audience’s spirits as the stage was moved inside around dusk and headliner Delicate Steve kept the party going at full capacity into the wee hours of the morning, with everyone dancing between sets to Tim Love Lee’s classic DJ sets.
Delicate Steve ROCKS out at the Lantern Inn on Saturday night, photo by Grant Cornett
Festival goers revel despite the rain at the Lantern Inn on Saturday night, photo by Grant Cornett
To keep up energy for all that boogying, attendees devoured the delicious wood-fire pizzas by Angelo Womack (coming soon to the Lantern Inn on Main Street in Wassaic) and hot dogs by the Cabin Dog Snack Shack. Dirk Adams’ interactive sound tour was the outdoor interactive highlight of the weekend and was in constant use by the Maxon Mills. The film program, organized by Liliana Greenfield-Sanders and featuring an animation series curated by Joshua Frankel, were packed and included lively Q&A sessions afterwards as well as a midnight screening at the Luther barn stage on Friday night. The first-ever creative writing reading, organized by Ainsley McWha, was also a great success and served to expand the Wassaic Project’s interdisciplinary reach. Also new this year was ARTGANGS, organized by Brian Wane, Suzanne Hader and Isabella Bruno, which consisted of a Festival-wide art-turf game in which participants won by taking photos of people and artwork.
Angelo Womack served up handmade pizza out of his woodburning oven -- coming soon to the Lantern Inn on Main Street in Wassaic, photo by Grant Cornett
The Festival received some fantastic press, including a mention in the New York Times, the Huffington Post, Artlog, Artcat, Pitchfork, Rural Intelligence, and many more local and national publications. The Village Voice said: “At the center of the Festival are the works of 100 artists in the seven story former grain silo… [where] there were a number of gems. The music lineup was augmented by sound mixing as beautiful and clear as we’ve ever heard in any outdoor venue. It began to pour rain Saturday afternoon, and a particularly magical moment happened when the whole festival moved into the tiny hamlet’s only bar, just in time for the amazing Electric Junkyard Gamelan to perform for festival goers and locals alike.”
Sales of artwork were up significantly this year. 2010/2011 Wassaic Project artists-in-residence Ghost of a Dream (Lauren Was and Adam Eckstrom), whose work is included in this year’s summer exhibition, were signed to NYC-based gallery Davidson Contemporary’s roster of artists during the Festival, giving us all even more reason to celebrate. Ghost of a Dream and Davidson Contemporary connected during open studios at the Wassaic Project Residency Program this year. Also, art world luminaries Rick Lowe and Jasper Johns both attended the festival.
Caroline, an ARTGANGS participant, inside Ghost of a Dream's piece "Remember When Tomorrow Came"
For those who weren’t able to attend the Festival, there’s still a chance to check out the Summer Exhibition at Maxon Mills! The gallery will be open on Saturdays and Sunday from 11am to 5pm through September 4th.
Congratulations to all of the artists, musicians, dancers, filmmakers, and writers who participated, and a big thank you to the fabulous Wassaic Project community! Stay tuned for news about other upcoming Wassaic Project events, and see you at next year’s Festival!
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Upcoming Events:
Last Saturdays:
August 27th
September 24th
October 19th
