AMENIA — The town of Amenia and the North East (Webutuck) Central School District had their fair share of ups and downs throughout 2012.JanuaryJanuary began with the swearing in of Bill Flood as town supervisor, CJ Hoss as councilman and Ian MacDonald as attorney to the town.The board began pre-bidding for the landfill project on Route 22. The project will clean up contaminated soil and eventually turn the area into a public park.Webutuck’s Board of Education (BOE) announced plans to survey the community for input on immediate improvements they could make.The board also decided to donate $1,000 to the Dial-A-Ride program in Millerton (See story, page A3).FebruaryNew businesses popped up all throughout Amenia in 2012, including Kelly & Company hair salon on Route 22 next to the Freshtown Plaza.Webutuck’s Athletic Director Jon Zenz appealed to the BOE on Feb. 13 to begin an intramural sports program in hopes of exposing students to sports before they try out for teams.MarchWebutuck took March by storm with their production of “Anything Goes.” Director Nancy Gagne and her husband, Jim, designed an elaborate cruise-ship facade for the show.The Amenia Town Board accepted a bid from Sevenson Environmental Group out of Pennsylvania for the landfill project, with a total cost of $4,000,633. The project is expected to be completed in fall 2013.AprilOn April 18 the Town Board hosted representatives from WP Sells to present possible designs for the Trail to Train project, which will extend the Harlem Valley Rail Trail 1/4 mile south into the hamlet of Wassiac.Town Clerk Maureen Bonds and her husband, Gary, the town’s audiovisual technician, resigned from their positions on April 19.“We’re losing you both, which is very sad,” said Flood.MayVoters turned out on May 15 to vote in favor of the 2012-13 Webutuck school budget with a vote of 257 to 82.BOE newcomer Judy Westfall won a seat on the board with 233 while long-time board member Dale Culver lost his seat with 132 votes.JuneThe 39th annual Strawberry Fair rang in June on the 9th. Despite light rain the community turnout was great and hundreds of the signature sundaes were sold.Webutuck graduated the class of 2012 on June 23. This was the 58th commencement ceremony at Webutuck.JulyOn July 9 Bill McGhee was voted the new president of the BOE while Judy Moran took the vice president position.Ed Mills of the Dutchess County Water and Wastewater Authority advised Amenia to postpone action on the proposed sewer district pending approval of hardship funding. The board heeded Mills’ advice.The community filled the hamlet of Wassaic for a fundraiser for Wassaic Fire Captain Jason Whaley, who was diagnosed with stage 4 pancreatic cancer. The event raised more than $35,000 to offset his medical expenses.AugustThe summer continued with The Wassaic Project’s fifth annual Summer Festival. Performers, artists and patrons came from all over the country to celebrate art from Aug. 3 through Aug. 5.Local soldier Amanda Whitehead left on her first deployment by the United States Army, for 13 months, to Afghanistan on Aug. 16. “I’m definitely a little nervous,” she said.SeptemberAs back to school rolled around the Indian Rock Schoolhouse hosted its annual Picnic & Community Day with a theme of old-time arts and crafts.The Town Board voted in favor of privatizing the town waste station on Sept. 20, turning operations over to Welsh Sanitation on Route 44.OctoberJune Kaufman returned for her seventh year as the instructor of the Amenia Free Dance Program, which has been running for more than 25 years.Webutuck unveiled its new website and grading portal.“We believe this will open communication between parents and kids about their education,” said Webutuck High School Principal Ken Sauer.NovemberAmenia and Wassaic firefighters traveled to towns devastated by Superstorm Sandy in early November for 72-hour shifts, assisting with the cleanup.“Nothing in reality could prepare you for what you saw,” said Wassaic Assistant Fire Chief Kenny Elliott.November also brought around election season; Dawn Marie Klingner won 967 votes to fill the town clerk position.DecemberCafe Primos brought Mexican-American cuisine to Wassaic with its location in Cousin’s Plaza on Route 22.The whole town pulled together for the first-ever Parade of Lights on Dec. 8.Amenia welcomed Wassaic, Millbrook and several Connecticut towns for a loud, festive parade leading to festivities at Town Hall, including a visit from Santa Claus. More than 500 people joined in the day-long holiday celebration.“It was a huge success,” said Flood.
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Textile designer Justine Valla sits in her father’s chair, which she painted, alongside her husband, illustrator and muralist Victor Valla, in their Atelier Valla studio.
“I was always drawing as a child,” Justine recalled. Victor dreamed of illustrating magazine covers like those of the “Saturday Evening Post.”
Victor studied design and illustration at Rochester Institute of Technology, then received a fellowship to study painting and printmaking at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaigne. He graduated in 1967. The following year, he received a grant from the Tiffany Foundation to study printmaking in Paris at Atelier 17, an experimental graphic arts workshop founded in 1927.
“What a great experience that was!” he recalled.
Returning home after the Paris uprisings of 1968, he discovered that the magazine covers he’d hoped to paint had largely given way to photography. His agent suggested trying record covers, which he pursued along with illustration and graphic design.
He also began teaching at Kean University in New Jersey.
“Kean had a wonderful graphic design and illustration department. I loved teaching Graphic Design, even though I never thought I would.”
He later taught at Syracuse University and Pennsylvania College of Art and Design.
In the late 1980s, he decided to stop teaching and concentrate on his own art. He moved to Falls Village, to a house on the corner of Minor and Prospect Streets.
“I used to call the studio ‘Minor Prospects Atelier,’” he said.
He continued working in illustration and graphic design, creating book covers for stories by H.P. Lovecraft and other authors, along with magazine covers, logos, advertising and murals.
Justine and Victor Valla in their studio with a painting of Victor’s,”Jonah and the Whale.” Robin Roraback
His local commissions include the green and gold Noble Horizons signage and wall murals for the Stockbridge Inn, the Spa at Norwich Inn, Orchards Hotel in Williamstown and the David M. Hunt Library’s children’s section.
Justine grew up in the Bronx and studied at the Fashion Institute of Technology. After graduating, she took on whatever work she could find, including designing toys and novelty items for Russ Berrie. But her true calling was textile design.
She moved to Los Angeles to pursue that calling, where she learned silkscreen printing from 1960s design icon Corita Kent.
“I was in her program at Immaculate Heart College. All fabric design at that time was silk screen. My first job in textile design was in L.A., creating wallpaper for Bob Mitchell Design.”
Justine returned to New York City, where the advent of computers required her to learn new design techniques. She enrolled at Parsons School of Design, studying Photoshop, Illustrator, Lectra U4ia and Kaledo.
Around this time, she met Victor online and moved to Falls Village.
A recruiter found her a job in Arkansas at Dillard’s, a department store chain operating in 30 states and known for its exclusive designer collections.
“They had the best equipment I’d ever seen,” she said.
She became a senior computer-aided design designer there, designing fabric and preparing purchased designs for production.
The Vallas left Falls Village for Little Rock.
“It was a big move,” she said. “It was a different culture, but Little Rock was very progressive.”
The originally planned to stay in Arkansas for five years but ended up remaining for nearly 10.
Then Justine was hit by a car. She suffered injuries to her leg and head and required four years of rehabilitation.
“I lost the ability to paint after the accident. I struggled to paint again.”
The Vallas returned to Connecticut, this time settling in Salisbury, where they’ve lived since 2013.
After leaving Dillard’s, Justine had planned to sell her work through Printsource in New York City, an international showcase for surface and textile design. But after the accident, she no longer had the mobility or energy to travel back and forth to the city.
Instead, she began selling her work locally at craft shows, including clothing, hand-printed tea towels and floorcloths.
She is currently working on selling her collection of textile designs.
In December, Justine will have a show of her tea-themed watercolors at the NorthEast-Millerton Library.
Victor recently exhibited “The American West: A Pictural History” at the NorthEast-Millerton Library. The series, created in the early 1990s, was part of a commission from the Postal Commemorative Society for which he completed 100 paintings in two years.
He hopes to place the series in a museum and has created books from its images, complete with text. Over the years, he has designed many other books that are ready for publication, including “Looking In, Looking Out,” a cosmic view of the universe.
Reflecting on his career, Victor said, “It’s about doing what you love”.
Justine agreed.
To see, purchase or commission work, contact Justine at justinevalla@gmail.com or Victor at victorvalla@comcast.net, or call 860-596-4282.
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Jane Herold’s beautifully simple dinnerware.
Cornwall ceramicist Jane Herold explained that there’s quite a lot of enthusiasm for Clay Way among the region’s ceramic artists.
“We all need work space, which is hard to find or afford in urban areas. The wood-fire crowd needs lots of wood and outdoor space. This area is great because it’s rural enough for us, but has a wonderfully enthusiastic and supportive population of pottery [patrons].”
While many of the artists are returning from previous years, the loose collection of unofficial organizers likes to keep the event manageable for the public, limiting the number of artists and studios each year. A direct drive from the southernmost point at Ann Heywood’s studio in Wingdale to Herold’s big barn in Cornwall is under 40 minutes. But if you want to catch it all, plan for a full day’s worth of art exploration along some of the most beautiful roads in New England.
Starting at its northernmost point, Herold’s studio will host Matin Malikzada of Afghanistan, whose polished, modern interpretations of traditional forms are instantly recognizable. They’ll be joined by wood-fired ceramicists Steve Johnson, with his raw, organic forms, and Harry Levenstein, whose works relate closely to Johnson’s while making even more direct references to nature.
Herold herself creates work that is both beautiful and utilitarian. Her prolific output of objects is intended to be used by everyday people as part of their daily lives.
Moving south is Todd Piker of Cornwall Bridge Pottery. Piker has been making pots in his giant wood-fired kiln since 1971. The kiln looks more like an ancient blast furnace than something designed to transform clay into ceramics, but over the years, he’s mastered its intricacies and produces an impressive amount of fine work.
A ceramic vase by Kathleen Heidemann.Provided
Piker will host Sanah Peterson, who works at Cornwall Bridge Pottery and draws inspiration from both her time with Piker and her time traveling the globe as a child. They’ll be joined by Stephanie Haines, whose vibrant, eye-catching work features underglaze illustrations of birds, fruit and the bounty of nature.
Further along in Warren, Jessica Dubin’s pieces will be on display at the studio of Christine Owen. Both artists seem to appreciate the chaos and unpredictable nature of clay but find ways to refine it all using their own unique methods.
Heading east to Washington, Conn., Will Talbot’s creates intricate work while allowing for the unpredictable nature of clay to play a role. His studio will house Tom Knox and his wide variety of textures and forms, as well as New York City-based Alex Lebedev, who lets music and the nature of improvisation guide his work.
There will be two studios participating in South Kent. Alison Palmner, whose page on the Clay Way website states she “strives to achieve a lighthearted meld of human forms, animals and the vessel.” Her studio will host Ben Eberle, who trained under the guidance of legendary potter Toshiko Takaezu; James Guggina, whose intricate work can appear both deliberate and whimsical; and Paula Shalan, who blends rough, unrefined surfaces with polished precision in individual pieces.
Joy Brown’s delightful ceramic sculptures.Provided
Nearby is Joy Brown, whose work have become a staple of the area, with her figurative sculptures dotting the Northwest Corner. Brown’s studio will also feature Bonnie Levine, who taps into the beauty of chaos and destruction in her work, and Brendan Moore, whose more utilitarian forms are perfect for everyday use.
Finally, the tour crosses the border into Wingdale, New York, where the studios of Drew Montgomery, Ann Heywood and Amy Brenner will host Jackie Sedlock, Lynn Behrendt,and Kathleen Heidemann.
Brenner creates some of the most colorful and vibrant pieces on the tour, while Behrendt’s work is among the most studied and precise. Heywood creates carefully considered, intuitive forms, while Heidemann moves from simple minimalism to intricate textures. Montgomery and Sedlock both find new ways of playing with traditional forms, producing delightfully distinctive pieces.
To learn more about the artists and download a map of participating studios, visit clayway.net
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