Albany Township artists will open their doors for the 7th Annual Hawk Mountain Arts Tour & Sale on Saturday, June 2 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. This free, self-guided driving tour is a chance to discover a wide range of art from more than two dozen local artists and artisans at 16 stops, most within a 25 mile radius. Held rain or shine, the tour is open to the public.
A free printable map is available for download at www.hawkmountain.org/artstour and a prominent road sign will mark each location. Although the map shows numbered stops, participants are encouraged to design their own tour and to begin and end at any location.
“The Arts Tour is a chance to meet local artists, see a huge variety of work, and enjoy some of the best scenery without traveling far from home,” explains Mary Linkevich, a spokesperson for Hawk Mountain who also helps to organize the event.
“I always think of it as a road trip in your own backyard,” she adds.
Linkevich says her best advice is to look over the map and artist list, select a few favorite stops, and don’t try to fit in everything the first time.
“All of the artists and their homes and studios are interesting and in some cases, quite incredible,” she says, “so it’s easy to stay longer than you think in any one place.”
“For example, if you’re interested in local history, you could spend all afternoon talking to [artist] Jon Bond who founded the Albany Historical Society, or spend an hour in [potter] Jeff Dietrich’s historic log home. The point is you should build your own tour based on personal interest, then linger as long as you like,” she says.
During the tour visitors to Hawk Mountain Sanctuary will have an opportunity to see blacksmith artist and chainsaw carver Todd Gladfelter in action, as he demonstrates his blacksmithing craft outside the Visitor Center. Inside his wife Cindy Ross will display paintings and also will be on hand to sign copies of her books which detail her outdoor adventures and long-range hikes.
The remaining artists on the tour are located in the valley below Hawk Mountain. Just two miles down the road is wood fired potter Willi Singleton at Pine Creek Pottery. Beyond Willi’s pots, most stops are within two to three miles of one another and connected among a string of back country roads passing fields, forest and streams. Artwork along the way is diverse and includes wildlife paintings, folk art carving, woven seats and baskets, photography, redware and wood fired stoneware pottery and more.
New his year will be Jeff Kahn who is famous for his kinetic sculptures, and Mark Amey, who is a long-time potter. Both men live near Blue Rocks Campground, so follow signs from Rotue 143. Also new will be Shirley and Tony Mauer who create crafts from barn wood, and Sarah Wagner who uses metal sheets to create chickadee wall hangings. Maurer will welcome visitors into her home and Wagner will exhibit her work at the home of jewelry maker Janis Kauffman.
“Some artists have been doing the tour since our first year, but each year we add a new type of artwork or location that adds a new twist,” says Linkevich.
Artists will be on hand at each stop to meet and greet visitors when they stop to browse art in their home or studio and many will demonstrate. Five artists also will display at host locations, which this year Wannamaker’s General Store, the Albany Township Historical Society building and Pamela’s Forget-me-Not Bed and Breakfast.
For more information on the artists, driving directions, or the event, visit www.hawkmountain.org/artstour or call 610-765-6961. Food will be available for sale at Wanamaker’s General Store, The Kempton Hotel or Deitsch Eck in Lenhartzville.
Open year-round, Hawk Mountain Sanctuary is the world’s first refuge for birds of prey and an international center for raptor conservation. Its eight miles of trails and half a dozen scenic overlooks are open to the public for a modest trail fee. An average of 18,000 hawks, eagles and falcons are recorded each autumn as they migrate past Hawk Mountain.