Friendships In Arcadia: Writers And Artists At Yaddo In The Nineties

April 15 - May 20, 2000

New York (April 14, 2000) — On April 15, 2000, the Yaddo Centennial Arts Festival inaugurates a four-month multidisciplinary program celebrating the centenary of Yaddo, the legendary Saratoga Springs, New York artists' community, with the exhibition Friendships in Arcadia. The exhibition, organized by Barbara Toll, will take place at Art in General in the Lower Manhattan neighborhood of Tribeca. By juxtaposing wall-texts by 25 writers to works by visual artists they have chosen to discuss, this innovative exhibition explores the complex professional and personal relationships that can develop in Yaddo¹s arcadian atmosphere. Among the participating writers are novelists Oscar Hijuelos, A.M. Homes, and Rick Moody, as well as poets Peter Balakian, Anne Carson, and Sapphire. The visual artists, who work in mediums ranging from painting to performance to film, include Zeke Berman, Luca Buvoli, Susan Crile, Julia Jacquette, John Kelly, Melissa Meyer, Anne Truitt, and William Pope.L. A full roster of participants follows.

This innovative exhibition project explores the spirit of creative interchange that is a hallmark of the Yaddo program, as writers respond to artists and the art they create. Such cross-fertilization represents the ideal sought by Yaddo¹s founders at the time of the community¹s founding. Incorporated in 1900 by Spencer and Katrina Trask, Yaddo provides professional creative artists the opportunity to work without interruption in a supportive community. The Yaddo Centennial Arts Festival celebrates the inspired philanthropy of the Trasks, the accomplishments of the artists who have been their guests during the past century, and the creative vitality of the arts in America today.

While the purpose of a residency at Yaddo is an uninterrupted workday, in the evening, after dinner, a lively camaraderie develops among artists working in different disciplines. For writers, this collegial spirit of dialogue can result in articles, poems, stories, essays, or reviews that find their source in the studios of Yaddo visual and performing artists. For artists, the stimulation of conversation involving the articulation of abstract ideas often leads to new directions in their work.

Yaddo offers residencies to professional creative artists from all nations and backgrounds working in one or more of the following media: choreography, film, literature, musical composition, painting, performance art, photography, printmaking, sculpture, and video. Artists may apply individually or as members of a collaborative team of two or three. Invitations are based upon reviews by a panel of professional artists. Residencies last from two weeks to two months and include room, board and studio. Yaddo¹s mission‹to provide artists uninterrupted time to work, good working conditions, and a supportive community‹has remained central to its operation and has contributed to the success of its artists. Yaddo artists have been awarded 53 Pulitzer Prizes, 52 National Book Awards, a Nobel Prize, three Academy Awards, and many other important honors. Thanks to the generosity and vision of its founders, Yaddo is known for its inspirational powers, and some artists credit the community with creative breakthroughs.

While the work made at Yaddo today reflects contemporary sensibilities, styles, and forms, the fundamental mission that sustains this achievement has remained constant. For Friendships in Arcadia, each writer has contributed a brief statement, a personal reaction to a specific work or shared experience.

Friendships in Arcadia: Writers and Artists at Yaddo in the '90s

JONATHAN AMES ­ AVA GERBER
DONALD ANTRIM ­ ZEKE BERMAN
PETER BALAKIAN ­ FRAN SIEGEL
JO ANN BEARD ­ DARRA KEETON
PETER CAMERON ­ JOHN KELLY
ANNE CARSON ­ KIM ANNO
SUSAN CHEEVER ­ SUSAN CRILE
HENRI COLE ­ SUSAN UNTERBERG
ALFRED CORN ­ GAIL WITTWER
PETER DAVISON ­ MATHEW WEAVER
LYNN FREED ­ LUCA BUVOLI
COCO FUSCO ­ BARBARA HAMMER
ALLAN GURGANUS ­ MELISSA MEYER
OSCAR HIJUELOS ­ LUIS CASTRO
A. M. HOMES ­ JAMES ESBER AND JANE FINE
ERIC LANE ­ BETH REISMAN
M. G. LORD ­ LINDA GOTTESFELD
RICK MOODY ­ JULIA JACQUETTE
CULLEN MURPHY ­ HELÈNE AYLON
JOAN MURRAY ­ RON BARON
SAPPHIRE ­ BEVERLY McIVER
TOBIAS SCHNEEBAUM ­ ANNE TRUITT
HELEN SCHULMAN ­ GARRY MITCHELL
STEVEN WATSON ­ WILLIAM POPE.L
LINDA YABLONSKY ­ JONATHAN SANTLOFER

For a complete listing of Festival events, please visit the Yaddo web site at http://yaddo.org. The direct link to the full festival schedule is here: Festival Schedule.

You can find additional information at the Art And Culture web site at http://www.artandculture.com.

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Contact:

Lesley Leduc

Public Affairs Coordinator

Telephone: (518) 584-0746 Fax: (518) 584-1312 E-mail: lleduc@yaddo.org