HRM Collection & Exhibitions
Dive in and rediscover the Museum’s special exhibitions and permanent collection with these online resources.
Derrick Adams & Mickalene Thomas Interview for Derrick Adams: Buoyant
If you didn’t get to see Derrick Adams: Buoyant in person yet, or even if you did, now’s a great time to watch this video of a conversation between Derrick Adams and Mickalene Thomas, internationally renowned artists and longtime friends, who speak about the their inspiration and the power of “Black radical aesthetic joy.” You can also read their full conversation in the exhibition catalog, which is available for purchase.
Final Virtual Tour of “We Came to Party and Plan” with Derrick Adams and Masha Turchinsky
Watch featured artist Derrick Adams and HRM Director and CEO Masha Turchinsky in a virtual conversation filmed live from the Museum’s galleries and streamed on Instagram on Friday, October 16, 2020.
Curator Tour from Home: James E. Bartlett on “We Came to Party and Plan”
James Bartlett, co-curator of the HRM exhibition “Derrick Adams: Buoyant,” provides an informal overview of the artist’s immersive, site-specific installation “We Came to Party and Plan, a newly created body of work that invites the viewer into a party atmosphere full of complexity. Bartlett was joined by HRM Director Masha Turchinsky, who takes us on a behind-the-scenes walkthrough of the exhibition at the HRM during this Instagram Live event, which streamed on May 9, 2020. To learn more about the exhibition, visit http://www.hrm.org/derrickadams
Another Look at “Derrick Adams: Buoyant”
Join Laura Vookles, co-curator of “Derrick Adams: Buoyant,” at the Hudson River Museum, and graphic designer and HRM Docent David Lucas for a conversation about Adams’ Floaters series. They will focus on how the artist uses color, composition, and design to convey his joyous and empowering message, and offer a rich visual and verbal counterpoint as they discuss the exhibition from the conceptual and visual perspectives. Lucas was an Art Director in the Private Brand division of Macy’s, designing packaging, visual merchandising, and signage for the store. He taught graphic design at the college level and served as the official graphic designer for Playland Amusement Park in Rye, NY. He was also the exhibition designer for “Through Our Eyes: Milestones and Memories of African Americans in Yonkers,” which was on view at the HRM in 2019.
LIVE from Tandem Press: The Making of Derrick Adams’ Self-Portrait on Float
Derrick Adams’ monumental acrylic on paper, Floater 80 (Self-Portrait), 2018, is one of the signature works in the Hudson River Museum’s exhibition, “Derrick Adams: Buoyant.” Last year, the Museum acquired the 2019 print, Self-Portrait on Float, which is based on the painting. To create this artwork, Adams collaborated with master printers Jason Ruhl and Joe Freye and other artisans from Tandem Press, who together carved nearly 100 individual blocks of wood for thirty different colors and collaged gold leaf and paper fingernails onto each impression. Jason and Joe speak live on Instagram from the Tandem Press studio at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, as they discuss and demonstrate the process of making the print—from the breakdown of the image, to the creation of the puzzle-cut blocks, to the inking and printing of a run.
Radical Recreation: A Conversation with Derrick Adams and Alison Rose Jefferson
On Sunday, June 14, 2020, artist Derrick Adams and historian Alison Rose Jefferson, M.H.C., Ph.D., explored the theme of water in modern African American history—from segregation to access, from restricted clubs to public bathhouses, pools, and beaches—to the present day. The topic has particular resonance to the artist’s work in the exhibition Derrick Adams: Buoyant, as well as during this time of civil unrest, and as many members of our community will directly experience the loss of recreational outlets this summer due to the pandemic. Dr. Jefferson discussed her new book, Living the California Dream: African American Leisure Sites during the Jim Crow Era, which features artwork by Derrick Adams on the cover, while Adams addressed the complexities of the Black lived experience in his art. The conversation was moderated by Hudson River Museum Director Masha Turchinsky.
Author Talk: Gretchen Sorin on Sojourns in the American City
Gretchen Sorin, Ph.D., Director and Distinguished Service Professor, Cooperstown Graduate Program, talks about her recently released book, “Driving While Black: African American Travel and the Road to Civil Rights,” and how the automobile fundamentally changed African American life during this virtual event organized by the Hudson River Museum. Her perspective brings into focus the true history beyond the Hollywood movie, “The Green Book,” showing travel as a political act. Today, the annual guidebook, “The Negro Motorist Green Book,” published from 1936–1966, and popularly known simply as “The Green Book,” serves as a poignant artifact and reminder of the importance of equality during a time in which the ubiquity of racial inequity continues to negatively shape the lives and experiences of many Black Americans. In 2018, Derrick Adams’ installation “Sanctuary,” at the Museum of Arts and Design, treated the same subject through mixed media collage, assemblage, and sculpture. Following the presentation, join us for Q&A with Dr. Sorin.
Panel Discussion: First Person Voice
First Person Voice explored the importance of Black artists creating and controlling their own artistic images in mainstream media in a conversation between James E. Bartlett, arts entrepreneur and co-curator of Derrick Adams: Buoyant, writer and activist Emil Wilbekin, filmmaker Terence Nance, and designer and filmmaker Walé Oyéjidé, Esq. This virtual talk examined the growth, visibility, and importance of a new generation of artists creating works that explicitly reflect their own lived experiences, and that of their communities.
Art Project: Planning Your Party by Tijay Mohammed
Engage in this hands-on workshop created by Teaching Artist-in-Residence Tijay Mohammed, who guides you step-by-step in making a mixed-media collage that represents your ideal party. Celebrate a birthday, anniversary, graduation, or just the joy of life as part of a community! Inspired by We Came to Party and Plan installation as part of “Derrick Adams: Buoyant.” Recommended for ages 4+.
Art Project: Festive Functions
Celebrate Derrick Adams’ installation “We Came to Party and Plan” at the Hudson River Museum by making your own party hat! HRM’s Manager of School Programs, Bridget McCormick, will show you how.
SC Hudson River Museum
The Hudson River Museum recently teamed up with Second Canvas to create SC Hudson River Museum, a free app that allows you to experience 10 works from our collection like never before. Explore incredible details and discover stories hidden within the artworks by using scModule’s super high-resolution zoom and unique storytelling features.
