What’s to see at the Institute
ALBANY — The past and the present meet at the Albany Institute of History and Art with its fall and winter exhibitions that capture the wonder of imagination, an integral and beloved fine art movement, and a journey through history to the modern day created by a thriving community of artisans.
As the Albany Institute prepares for 2025 with their exhibition beginning on Saturday, Feb. 1, with “Americans Who Tell the Truth” featuring the works of Robert Shetterly, fiber artist Salley Mavor’s wildly successful exhibit “Enchanting Threads: The Art of Salley Mavor” continues through Sunday, Feb. 23, 2025.
As fabric, embroidery, and textile arts have resurged in recent years, Mavor has amassed a large social media following of all ages devoted to her ‘Wee Folk’ series and characters. With her books, Mavor has opened up a world of imagination as she transforms pipe cleaners, fake flowers, and hand-dyed fabrics into charming worlds.
“Everybody wants their grandchildren or children to have one of her books because they’re playful and innocent, yet so incredibly creative when you look at the details and the stitching,” said Curator Diane Shewchuk.
The exhibit includes Mavor’s series from her picture book “My Bed: Enchanting Ways to Fall Asleep Around the World,” a whimsical and intimate story about how children fall asleep in their bedrooms all over the world, from India and Japan to Scandinavia and North America.
“To see all of the care and attention to detail and craft that goes into every single scene is remarkable, and how inventive she is with the designs, colors, and motifs,” said Marisa Espe, Director of Communications. “You can keep looking at these and really pay attention to the tiny little details in these works.”
When entering the wing of the museum leading to the exhibition, an eye-catching beaded elk hide of the Hudson River serves as a striking reminder of the impact of the colonization of the region. The elk hide’s placement in the exhibit of People of the “Waters That Are Never Still: A Celebration of Mohican Art and Culture” next to “Delights of the Senses” was purposeful.
“You know you’re in the Dutch exhibition, but you can tell by looking ahead that there’s another, different exhibition that complements it,” said McCombs. “It was a way to give visual clues to our visitors that there are two exhibitions. We felt it was absolutely important to create these two exhibitions simultaneously.”
The Albany area is traditionally called Pempotowwuthut-Muhhecanneuw, meaning “the fireplace of the Mohican nation.” Honoring this history, the exhibit “People of the Waters That Are Never Still: A Celebration of Mohican Art and Culture,” open until Tuesday, Dec. 31, was curated by Tamara Aupaumut, a self-taught multidisciplinary artist and independent curator.
“My intention with this exhibition was to create a visual presence and bring greater awareness to the artists that are part of the Stockbridge-Munsee Mohican Community,” said Aupaumaut.
Aupaumaut descends from the Stockbridge-Munsee Band of Mohican Indians, the Oneida, and Brothertown Indian Nations. The Institute cites Aupaumaut’s viewpoint and work as invaluable during the curatorial process, with the exhibit designed to honor the Muh-he-con-ne-ok people, contemporarily known as the Stockbridge-Munsee Community Band of Mohican Indians.
The Albany Institute located and brought in select historical pieces to complement the art in the exhibit. “While advocating for living artists is important to me, the ancestral objects in the exhibition are equally important,” said Aupaumaut.
“It is an honor to be able to share these cherished ancestral items because they speak to how we came to be here—none of us is here without those that cared for the land and passed down our cultural practices,” she added.
In addition to the artwork and historical pieces, the exhibition features contemporary visual works that include a four-part musical composition by composer Brent Michael Davids and a poem by Bonney Hartley.
“At the same time, we in the present have a responsibility to our descendants to leave our home, this land, in a good way and to preserve our practices for the future,” she added. “Our art and our culture are innately part of who we are as Mohican people and connect us to something bigger than ourselves—community. Community creates belonging, and belonging creates care.”
The Albany Institute hopes that the exhibitions will provide an opportunity for art and artists to express the history of the region while looking ahead to the future. “I feel that both of these exhibits are our gift to the area and our gift to Albany,” said Shewchuk.
“I hope that by sharing who we are as Mohican people, the greater community feels a sense of belonging and a shared responsibility to care for the land—our home,” said Aupaumaut.
To see all photos in gallery click here
