Looking Back, Looking Forward—With You

Dear Friends of the HRM,

As we take stock of a memorable year at the Hudson River Museum and prepare for the debut of our new West Wing in the first half of 2023, I am reminded yet again that we are a dynamic and resilient community. I thank you for being integral to all we have accomplished together. At every turn, your participation and support have left indelible marks.

Throughout this year, we have worked diligently to prepare our new world-class exhibition galleries right along the Hudson—special thanks to our supporters and partners in New York State, Westchester County, and City of Yonkers—all while continuing to present a full roster of high-caliber exhibitions and programs. We began 2022 sharing the masterworks of African American Art in the Twentieth Century, welcomed new audiences from near and far with our fully bilingual exhibitions dedicated to the iconic Frida Kahlo, and set about reimagining our collections in unexpected ways. Cycles of Nature has spoken to growth, change, and resilience, while featuring stunning new gifts to the Museum for the public to enjoy.

We kept the important conversation about climate change front and center with Federico Uribe: Plastic Reef and numerous scientific partners. We made the historic become contemporary through our participation in HBO’s The Gilded Age series, which has ushered in new appreciation for the craftsmanship and history of Glenview. We took stock of the many reasons to both admire and think critically about landscape in The Bierstadt Brothers: Painting and Photography, and we brought outstanding American artwork never seen before in New York through our work with the Art Bridges’ Collection Loan Program in Order / Reorder: Experiments with Collections.

We continued to raise our profile regionally, nationally (thank you to our visitors from at least 38 states this year!), and internationally through the recognition of the Museum’s programs and exhibitions—organized and presented thanks to generous funding from individuals and organizations. We made feature story news with Order / Reorder and our unexpected juxtapositions of emerging local artists with nationally known names in American Fine Art Magazine, on CBS news for our historic home, and made public radio soundwaves on WNYC’s All of It with Alison Stewart for putting women front and center in Matrix: Prints by Women Artists, 1960–1990.

We were honored to receive three Best of Westchester Awards in 2022—Best Historic Site, Best Art Gallery, and Best Tourist Attraction. If you’re looking for somewhere to bring your out–of-town guests, look no further than your local HRM! And when you’re ready to journey through the skies during a unique Planetarium concert, don’t miss the exciting return of Music Under the Dome: Wess Meets West in January!

We grew our school partnerships both around the corner and throughout the region and strengthened our digital initiatives to ensure there are many ways you can engage with us and with each other no matter where you are. We welcomed a diverse and dynamic cohort through our Teaching Artists-in-Residence program, who broadened our collective practice through music, poetry, and painting. We welcomed the 27th annual cohort of HRM Junior Docents—undeniably, an incubator for our collective future personified by 80 aspiring teen leaders from the Yonkers Public Schools.

We’re not static and neither are you. Knowing that our audiences are thirsty for knowledge and connection, we brought together innovative musicians, seasoned educators, award-winning authors, groundbreaking scientists, and artists of all kinds to offer numerous ways to engage. And, we again grew our Board of Trustees ranks with the addition of esteemed artist Julia Santos Solomon.

We embrace the importance of feeling seen at our Museum and continue to invest in growing our permanent collection to better represent women and historically underrepresented artists and we’re nowhere near done with this work. As just one example, we invite you to experience Frederick J. Brown: A Drawing in Five Parts, featuring the artist’s groundbreaking approaches to figurative expressionism and portraiture.

The best part of reflecting on these accomplishments and navigating changing times is that we have not only done it for you but with you. We would be honored and grateful if you continued to join us in charting our future at this key juncture in our history by participating in the Annual Fund or joining us as a valued Member.

From all of us at the HRM, I send you my deepest appreciation and warmest wishes for our new year together,

Masha Turchinsky
Director and CEO