Founded by curator Helen Toomer, co-founder of Marbletown’s Stoneleaf Retreat artist residency, the Upstate Art Weekend launched in 2020 with a roster of 23 venues organizing mainly outdoor exhibits and installations. Back for its third edition, this year’s three-day, self-guided event will include 145 museums, art institutions, galleries, local businesses, and artists. Running from Friday, July 22 to Sunday, July 24, there will be over 100 special exhibitions and projects plus 50 open studios to choose from.  Above: Storm King Art Center South Fields, all works by Mark di Suvero. Photograph by Jerry L. Thompson, courtesy of Storm King Art Center

“Upstate Art Weekend is about community, collaboration, art, and the outdoors, which are essential to our well-being,” says Toomer. “Our goal is to highlight the cultural vibrancy of Upstate New York and connect people and places, building a community that not only visits for the weekend, but returns throughout the year.” Above: Mural by Macon Reed at UPAW 2021 Opening at Stoneleaf Retreat

The weekend-long event will span eight counties: Columbia, Delaware, Dutchess, Greene, Orange, Putnam, Sullivan, and Ulster. In an exciting addition to the programming this year, more than 50 individual artists will open their studios to the public on Saturday, July 23, and Sunday, July 24, from 12 to 6pm. Map

This year’s list of participants include well-known names like Storm King Art Center, Opus 40 Sculpture Park, Dia Beacon, Olana, Magazzino, and more alongside relative newcomers such as the woman-owned design studio and cooperative Hinterland in Shokan.

Highlights from Chronogram’s Top Ten Picks

Pamela Salisbury Gallery, Hudson

Wrapping up at Pamela Salisbury Gallery in Hudson on July 24, just in time for Upstate Art Weekend, are five individual exhibitions of multiple works: “Wander” by Valerie Hammond and Kiki Smith, “Greetings and Offerings” by Shari Mendelson, “Memento Mori” by Portia Munson, “Para Pastoral” by Jennifer Coates, and “Sessions” by Phoebe Helander. Visit website for gallery hours and more information. Above: Phoebe Helander, Half an Old Lemon, 2022

Women’s Studio Workshop Book Fair, Rosendale

Rosendale multidisciplinary arts organization the Women’s Studio Workshop will host its first-ever annual book fair on July 23. The event will feature art books by over 30 artists, writers, and independent publishers, and will run from 10am to 5pm. Attendees can shop for zines, artists’ books, and other printed matter, both inside the studio and outside on WSW’s patio. A free opening exhibition and dance party will follow from 7pm to 10pm.

Arlene Schechet at T Space, Rhinebeck

Visitors to “T” Space art and architecture reserve in Rhinebeck may take guided tours of the 30-acre site, which includes an installation trail with permanent outdoor installations by Richard Nonas, Oscar Tuazon, and others. On July 22 at 11am and July 24 at noon, guided tours of the experimental Ex of In House by Steven Holl will take place (reservations recommended); on July 23 from 1pm to 4pm, artist Arlene Shechet will be at the “T” Space Gallery to talk about her installation, above; photo courtesy of Susan Wides/T Space.