Art and design students in Syracuse University's College of Visual and Performing
Arts (VPA) have collaborated with the Erie Canal Museum on its latest exhibition,
"Observations East and West: Artists' Views of the Historic Erie Canal." The
exhibition, which is free and open to the public, is on view through Friday, April 3, at
the museum, located at 318 Erie Boulevard East. A reception will be held Thursday,
Feb. 19, from 5-6:30 p.m.
"Observations East and West" features student work from the fall 2008 landscape
painting class taught by Sarah McCoubrey, associate professor of painting in VPA's
School of Art and Design. The exhibition was framed, matted and installed by
students in the school's graduate program in museum studies.
The subject of the works is an exploration of the changing environment as impacted
by the Erie Canal. To accomplish this, the class met weekly at a variety of locations
along the Erie Canal, including the more rural areas, the suburbs and the city, as well
as at the Erie Canal Museum. The choice of these sites represents more than 200 years
of transition in the surrounding Syracuse community and illustrates the change in
the living environment as the community evolved from a casual-based transportation
center into a major, modern metropolitan city.
The Erie Canal Museum is the nation's premier maritime museum specializing in
Erie Canal history. The museum is housed in the National Register 1850 Weighlock
Building, where canal boats were weighed to assess a toll on their cargo. It is the only
remaining structure of its kind in America.
The museum is open Monday-Saturday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. and Sunday, 10 a.m.-3 p.m.
Group tours are by appointment. For more information, call (315) 471-0593 or visit
http://www.eriecanalmuseum.org.
