Cornwall exhibit to showcase historic bridge paintings

WEST CORNWALL — Fifty years after artist Woldemar Neufeld completed one of the most ambitious artistic tributes ever devoted to the Housatonic River, a selection of his celebrated paintings will return to public view this summer, offering visitors a rare glimpse into the river’s history and the enduring landmarks that have long connected communities throughout the valley.

The exhibition, called “Bridges Across the Housatonic,” will open July 17 at the Housatonic River Commission and Cornwall Conservation Trust offices, located at 7 Railroad St. It will feature 10 original watercolor and ink paintings depicting bridges along the federally designated Wild & Scenic stretch of the Housatonic River in Northwest Connecticut.

The works, which mark the first public display of the collection since 2004, are part of the artist’s personal mission to document every bridge crossing the 149-mile Housatonic River. Beginning in 1974, Neufeld and his wife spent three years painting 65 automobile bridges and two pedestrian bridges stretching from the river’s headwaters in Massachusetts to Long Island Sound.

The resulting collection became both an artistic achievement and an important historical record, preserving scenes that in many cases have since changed dramatically through infrastructure improvements, environmental restoration and shifting patterns of land use.

Neufeld’s paintings capture not only the bridges themselves, but also the everyday relationship between people and the river — fishermen casting from its banks, farmers working nearby fields and travelers crossing structures that became familiar landmarks in communities from the Berkshires to Long Island Sound.

Today, many of the bridges depicted in Neufeld’s paintings remain cherished landmarks, while others have disappeared or evolved with the passage of time.

Presented by the Cornwall-based Housatonic Valley Association (HVA) in partnership with the Housatonic River Commission and Cornwall Conservation Trust, the exhibition also includes original sketches, reference photographs Neufeld took while creating the series in the 1970s, and contemporary photographs showing how many of the same locations have changed — or remarkably remained the same — over the past half century.

The public is invited to an opening reception on Friday, July 17, from 3 to 5 p.m.

About Neufeld’s works

Born in 1909, Neufeld established a national reputation as a painter, printmaker and sculptor whose work is held in collections including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Library of Congress, the New Britain Museum of American Art and Memorial Sloan Kettering Hospital.

“Neufeld was a realistic and sensitive portrayer of the connections between the built environment and the natural world,” said Tim Abbott, executive director of the Housatonic Valley Association.

“He understood that even mundane structures with a functional purpose like highway bridges had a form and elegance that not only help convey us over the river but become part of how we experience the landscape.”

Continued stewardship

The exhibition also celebrates the ongoing stewardship of the Housatonic River.

In 2023, a 41-mile stretch of the river through Northwest Connecticut received federal designation as part of the National Park Service’s Wild & Scenic Rivers Program, recognizing its exceptional scenic, ecological and recreational value.

Both HVA and the Housatonic River Commission played key roles in securing that designation and continue working alongside local conservation partners to protect water quality, wildlife habitat and public access throughout the watershed.

For residents who have seen renewed conservation efforts focus on the Housatonic River, including a $1.5 million state grant announced recently to keep a 245-acre parcel from development, the exhibition offers a look at its past and a reminder of why protecting its future remains a priority.