{"id":1871369,"date":"2026-04-06T10:00:39","date_gmt":"2026-04-06T07:00:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1871369"},"modified":"2026-04-06T10:00:39","modified_gmt":"2026-04-06T07:00:39","slug":"art-and-springtime-in-upstate-ny","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1871369","title":{"rendered":"Art and Springtime in Upstate NY"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>[analyse_image type=&#8221;featured&#8221; src=&#8221;&#8221;]<\/p>\n<p><main class=\"gh-main\"><\/p>\n<article class=\"gh-article post tag-daily-newsletter tag-newsletter no-image\">\n<header class=\"gh-article-header gh-canvas\">\n<p>                Daily Newsletter<\/p>\n<h1 class=\"gh-article-title is-title\">Art and Springtime in Upstate NY<\/h1>\n<p class=\"gh-article-excerpt is-body\">Plus, solace in Leah Ke Yi Zheng\u2019s divine paintings, Ali Cherri accuses Israel of war crimes, and a revealing new survey of POC-led arts orgs.<\/p>\n<div class=\"gh-article-meta\">\n<div class=\"gh-article-author-image instapaper_ignore\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"author-profile-image\" src=\"https:\/\/storage.ghost.io\/c\/51\/f8\/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a\/content\/images\/size\/w160\/2025\/11\/hyperallergic-favicon-d-blank-r-g-s-500.png\" alt=\"Hyperallergic\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"gh-article-meta-wrapper\">\n<h4 class=\"gh-article-author-name\">Hyperallergic<\/h4>\n<div class=\"gh-article-meta-content\"><time class=\"gh-article-meta-date\" datetime=\"2026-04-06\">April 6, 2026<\/time><span class=\"gh-article-meta-length\"><span class=\"bull\">\u2014<\/span> 4 min read<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/header>\n<section class=\"gh-content gh-canvas is-body\">\n<p>Spring in Upstate New York might just be my favorite time and place in the world\u2014\u00a0I love that sense of hope, renewal, and relief as those ceaseless gray days finally surrender to color. Speaking of, there&#8217;s some pretty great art on view in the region, as our favorite Upstate art writer, Taliesin Thomas, proves in her guide this month.<\/p>\n<p>Today, a new survey finds that art museums and organizations led by people of color are disproportionately understaffed, relying heavily on volunteer work to serve their communities. Also in the news,artist Ali Cherri, who won the Silver Lion Award for best film feature at the 2022 Venice Biennale, files a war crimes complaint against Israel for a Beirut strike that killed his parents. <\/p>\n<p>If you find yourself in need of a reprieve from earthly matters, Ed Simon and John Yau offer very different approaches to salvation in this issue: Salvador Dal\u00ed&#8217;s &#8220;Nuclear Mysticism,&#8221; on the one hand, and Leah Ke Yi Zheng&#8217;s contemporary divination on the other. <\/p>\n<p><em>\u2014Lisa Yin Zhang, associate editor<\/em><\/p>\n<hr>\n<figure class=\"kg-card kg-image-card kg-card-hascaption\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/storage.ghost.io\/c\/51\/f8\/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a\/content\/images\/2026\/04\/image-17-1-1.png\" class=\"kg-image\" alt loading=\"lazy\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1125\"><figcaption><span>Installation view of Sophie Kitching, \u201cBranches\u201d (2026) (photo courtesy Tyte gallery)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h3 id=\"10-exhibitions-to-see-in-upstate-new-york-this-april\">10 Exhibitions to See in Upstate New York This April<\/h3>\n<p>Lisa Karrer\u2019s \u201cwarm technology,\u201d Deirdre O\u2019Connell\u2019s loving portraits, Caleb Weintraub\u2019s fantastical realms, and more. | Taliesin Thomas<\/p>\n<hr>\n<div class=\"kg-card kg-cta-card kg-cta-bg-white kg-cta-immersive  kg-cta-has-img  \" data-layout=\"immersive\">\n<div class=\"kg-cta-sponsor-label-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"kg-cta-sponsor-label\"><span>SPONSORED<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"kg-cta-content\">\n<div class=\"kg-cta-image-container\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/storage.ghost.io\/c\/51\/f8\/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a\/content\/images\/2026\/04\/JPEG-image-2-2.jpeg\" alt=\"CTA Image\" data-image-dimensions=\"1200x675\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"kg-cta-content-inner\">\n<div class=\"kg-cta-text\">\n<p><b><strong>Call for Applications: 2026 Craft Archive Fellowship<\/strong><\/b><\/p>\n<p><span>The Center for Craft will award up to four $5,000 fellowships to support research on underrepresented craft histories, culminating in an article on Hyperallergic.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>                            Learn more<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<hr>\n<h2 id=\"news\">News<\/h2>\n<figure class=\"kg-card kg-image-card kg-card-hascaption\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/storage.ghost.io\/c\/51\/f8\/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a\/content\/images\/2026\/04\/image-18-1.png\" class=\"kg-image\" alt loading=\"lazy\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1125\"><figcaption><span>Visitors at the Anacostia Community Museum look at archival protest materials in the 2023 exhibition <\/span><i><em class=\"italic\">A Bold and Beautiful Vision: A Century of Black Arts Education in Washington, D.C., 1900-2000<\/em><\/i><span> (photo by Matailong Du, courtesy the Anacostia Community Museum and Museum Hue)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<ul>\n<li>A new report found that museums and cultural centers founded and led by people of color in the Northeast face severe staffing shortages, with over a third of responding institutions lacking a single full-time employee. <\/li>\n<li>Lebanese artist Ali Cherri has formally accused the Israeli military of committing a war crime for a strike that killed his parents in their Beirut apartment in 2024. <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<hr>\n<h2 id=\"feature\">Feature<\/h2>\n<figure class=\"kg-card kg-image-card kg-card-hascaption\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/storage.ghost.io\/c\/51\/f8\/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a\/content\/images\/2026\/04\/image-20-1.png\" class=\"kg-image\" alt loading=\"lazy\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1125\"><figcaption><span>Salvador Dal\u00ed, \u201cThe Sacrament of the Last Supper\u201d (1955) oil on canvas (photo courtesy National Gallery of Art)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h3 id=\"salvador-dal%C3%AD%E2%80%99s-frustrating-vision-of-the-divine\">Salvador Dal\u00ed\u2019s Frustrating Vision of the Divine<\/h3>\n<p>Having abandoned the profane for only the sacred, Dal\u00ed\u2019s \u201cNuclear Mysticism\u201d renounced the richness of experience for the aridity of metaphysics. | Ed Simon<\/p>\n<hr>\n<h2 id=\"from-our-critics\">From Our Critics<\/h2>\n<figure class=\"kg-card kg-image-card kg-card-hascaption\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/storage.ghost.io\/c\/51\/f8\/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a\/content\/images\/2026\/04\/image-19-1.png\" class=\"kg-image\" alt loading=\"lazy\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1125\"><figcaption><span>Installation view of Leah Ke Yi Zheng,\u00a0<\/span><i><em class=\"italic\">Change, I Ching (64 Paintings)<\/em><\/i><span> (2026) (photo Forrest Frederick for Bob, courtesy the Renaissance Society)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h3 id=\"leah-ke-yi-zheng%E2%80%99s-personal-i-ching\">Leah Ke Yi Zheng\u2019s Personal I Ching<\/h3>\n<p>The artist is synthesizing the divergent cultural histories of Western oil painting and Eastern ink painting into one. | John Yau<\/p>\n<hr>\n<div class=\"kg-card kg-cta-card kg-cta-bg-white kg-cta-immersive  kg-cta-has-img  \" data-layout=\"immersive\">\n<div class=\"kg-cta-sponsor-label-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"kg-cta-sponsor-label\"><span>SPONSORED<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"kg-cta-content\">\n<div class=\"kg-cta-image-container\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/storage.ghost.io\/c\/51\/f8\/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a\/content\/images\/2026\/02\/PrintFair-209-2-1.jpg\" alt=\"CTA Image\" data-image-dimensions=\"1200x675\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"kg-cta-content-inner\">\n<div class=\"kg-cta-text\">\n<p><b><strong>Brooklyn Fine Art Print Fair Returns to Powerhouse Arts This Week<\/strong><\/b><\/p>\n<p><span>Over 50 exhibitors, hands-on programming, and a juried print exhibition make up the fair\u2019s expanded second edition. April 9\u201312, 2026.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>                            Learn more<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<hr>\n<h2 id=\"community\">Community<\/h2>\n<figure class=\"kg-card kg-image-card kg-card-hascaption\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/storage.ghost.io\/c\/51\/f8\/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a\/content\/images\/2026\/04\/image-16-1.png\" class=\"kg-image\" alt loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1300\" height=\"731\"><figcaption><span>Antonella Gandini&#8217;s studio in Monzambano, Italy (photo courtesy Antonella Gandini)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h3 id=\"a-view-from-the-easel\">A View From the Easel<\/h3>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t foresee certain results, but I welcome the provocation of the material and the form.\u201d | Lakshmi Rivera Amin<\/p>\n<hr>\n<h2 id=\"member-comment\">Member Comment<\/h2>\n<p>Jozanne Rabyor on Hyperallergic\u2019s \u201c15 Shows to See in New York City This April\u201d:<\/p>\n<div class=\"kg-card kg-callout-card kg-callout-card-yellow\">\n<div class=\"kg-callout-text\">These round-ups are consistently wonderful. All your writers find old and new artists and galleries and shows to recommend and they comment so enticingly that I inevitably click on the venue and fantasize about adding this, that and the next to my own collection. I have limited funds and even more limited space, so it usually remains a game, but one of my favorites to play.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<hr>\n<h2 id=\"from-the-archive\">From the Archive<\/h2>\n<figure class=\"kg-card kg-image-card kg-card-hascaption\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/storage.ghost.io\/c\/51\/f8\/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a\/content\/images\/2026\/04\/image-23-1.png\" class=\"kg-image\" alt loading=\"lazy\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1125\"><figcaption><span>Ali Cherri, \u201cStanding Figure (Pow!)\u201d (2023), Mask Vili (Kongo), iron, xps, clay, sand, pigments, and pvac glue (image courtesy the artist and Imane Far\u00e8s, Paris)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h3 id=\"ali-cherri%E2%80%99s-muddy-affair\">Ali Cherri\u2019s Muddy Affair<\/h3>\n<p>The artist retells the myth of Gilgamesh through a meditation on mud, a primordial material and source of timeless storytelling. | Farah Abdessamad<\/p>\n<ul class=\"post-tags\">\n<li>\n                        Daily Newsletter\n                      <\/li>\n<li>\n                        Newsletter\n                      <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/section>\n<\/article>\n<p><\/main><\/p>\n<article class=\"gh-article post tag-daily-newsletter tag-newsletter no-image\">\n<header class=\"gh-article-header gh-canvas\">\n<p>                Daily Newsletter<\/p>\n<h1 class=\"gh-article-title is-title\">Art and Springtime in Upstate NY<\/h1>\n<p class=\"gh-article-excerpt is-body\">Plus, solace in Leah Ke Yi Zheng\u2019s divine paintings, Ali Cherri accuses Israel of war crimes, and a revealing new survey of POC-led arts orgs.<\/p>\n<div class=\"gh-article-meta\">\n<div class=\"gh-article-author-image instapaper_ignore\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"author-profile-image\" src=\"https:\/\/storage.ghost.io\/c\/51\/f8\/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a\/content\/images\/size\/w160\/2025\/11\/hyperallergic-favicon-d-blank-r-g-s-500.png\" alt=\"Hyperallergic\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"gh-article-meta-wrapper\">\n<h4 class=\"gh-article-author-name\">Hyperallergic<\/h4>\n<div class=\"gh-article-meta-content\"><time class=\"gh-article-meta-date\" datetime=\"2026-04-06\">April 6, 2026<\/time><span class=\"gh-article-meta-length\"><span class=\"bull\">\u2014<\/span> 4 min read<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/header>\n<section class=\"gh-content gh-canvas is-body\">\n<p>Spring in Upstate New York might just be my favorite time and place in the world\u2014\u00a0I love that sense of hope, renewal, and relief as those ceaseless gray days finally surrender to color. Speaking of, there&#8217;s some pretty great art on view in the region, as our favorite Upstate art writer, Taliesin Thomas, proves in her guide this month.<\/p>\n<p>Today, a new survey finds that art museums and organizations led by people of color are disproportionately understaffed, relying heavily on volunteer work to serve their communities. Also in the news,artist Ali Cherri, who won the Silver Lion Award for best film feature at the 2022 Venice Biennale, files a war crimes complaint against Israel for a Beirut strike that killed his parents. <\/p>\n<p>If you find yourself in need of a reprieve from earthly matters, Ed Simon and John Yau offer very different approaches to salvation in this issue: Salvador Dal\u00ed&#8217;s &#8220;Nuclear Mysticism,&#8221; on the one hand, and Leah Ke Yi Zheng&#8217;s contemporary divination on the other. <\/p>\n<p><em>\u2014Lisa Yin Zhang, associate editor<\/em><\/p>\n<hr>\n<figure class=\"kg-card kg-image-card kg-card-hascaption\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/storage.ghost.io\/c\/51\/f8\/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a\/content\/images\/2026\/04\/image-17-1-1.png\" class=\"kg-image\" alt loading=\"lazy\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1125\"><figcaption><span>Installation view of Sophie Kitching, \u201cBranches\u201d (2026) (photo courtesy Tyte gallery)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h3 id=\"10-exhibitions-to-see-in-upstate-new-york-this-april\">10 Exhibitions to See in Upstate New York This April<\/h3>\n<p>Lisa Karrer\u2019s \u201cwarm technology,\u201d Deirdre O\u2019Connell\u2019s loving portraits, Caleb Weintraub\u2019s fantastical realms, and more. | Taliesin Thomas<\/p>\n<hr>\n<div class=\"kg-card kg-cta-card kg-cta-bg-white kg-cta-immersive  kg-cta-has-img  \" data-layout=\"immersive\">\n<div class=\"kg-cta-sponsor-label-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"kg-cta-sponsor-label\"><span>SPONSORED<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"kg-cta-content\">\n<div class=\"kg-cta-image-container\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/storage.ghost.io\/c\/51\/f8\/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a\/content\/images\/2026\/04\/JPEG-image-2-2.jpeg\" alt=\"CTA Image\" data-image-dimensions=\"1200x675\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"kg-cta-content-inner\">\n<div class=\"kg-cta-text\">\n<p><b><strong>Call for Applications: 2026 Craft Archive Fellowship<\/strong><\/b><\/p>\n<p><span>The Center for Craft will award up to four $5,000 fellowships to support research on underrepresented craft histories, culminating in an article on Hyperallergic.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>                            Learn more<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<hr>\n<h2 id=\"news\">News<\/h2>\n<figure class=\"kg-card kg-image-card kg-card-hascaption\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/storage.ghost.io\/c\/51\/f8\/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a\/content\/images\/2026\/04\/image-18-1.png\" class=\"kg-image\" alt loading=\"lazy\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1125\"><figcaption><span>Visitors at the Anacostia Community Museum look at archival protest materials in the 2023 exhibition <\/span><i><em class=\"italic\">A Bold and Beautiful Vision: A Century of Black Arts Education in Washington, D.C., 1900-2000<\/em><\/i><span> (photo by Matailong Du, courtesy the Anacostia Community Museum and Museum Hue)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<ul>\n<li>A new report found that museums and cultural centers founded and led by people of color in the Northeast face severe staffing shortages, with over a third of responding institutions lacking a single full-time employee. <\/li>\n<li>Lebanese artist Ali Cherri has formally accused the Israeli military of committing a war crime for a strike that killed his parents in their Beirut apartment in 2024. <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<hr>\n<h2 id=\"feature\">Feature<\/h2>\n<figure class=\"kg-card kg-image-card kg-card-hascaption\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/storage.ghost.io\/c\/51\/f8\/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a\/content\/images\/2026\/04\/image-20-1.png\" class=\"kg-image\" alt loading=\"lazy\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1125\"><figcaption><span>Salvador Dal\u00ed, \u201cThe Sacrament of the Last Supper\u201d (1955) oil on canvas (photo courtesy National Gallery of Art)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h3 id=\"salvador-dal%C3%AD%E2%80%99s-frustrating-vision-of-the-divine\">Salvador Dal\u00ed\u2019s Frustrating Vision of the Divine<\/h3>\n<p>Having abandoned the profane for only the sacred, Dal\u00ed\u2019s \u201cNuclear Mysticism\u201d renounced the richness of experience for the aridity of metaphysics. | Ed Simon<\/p>\n<hr>\n<h2 id=\"from-our-critics\">From Our Critics<\/h2>\n<figure class=\"kg-card kg-image-card kg-card-hascaption\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/storage.ghost.io\/c\/51\/f8\/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a\/content\/images\/2026\/04\/image-19-1.png\" class=\"kg-image\" alt loading=\"lazy\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1125\"><figcaption><span>Installation view of Leah Ke Yi Zheng,\u00a0<\/span><i><em class=\"italic\">Change, I Ching (64 Paintings)<\/em><\/i><span> (2026) (photo Forrest Frederick for Bob, courtesy the Renaissance Society)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h3 id=\"leah-ke-yi-zheng%E2%80%99s-personal-i-ching\">Leah Ke Yi Zheng\u2019s Personal I Ching<\/h3>\n<p>The artist is synthesizing the divergent cultural histories of Western oil painting and Eastern ink painting into one. | John Yau<\/p>\n<hr>\n<div class=\"kg-card kg-cta-card kg-cta-bg-white kg-cta-immersive  kg-cta-has-img  \" data-layout=\"immersive\">\n<div class=\"kg-cta-sponsor-label-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"kg-cta-sponsor-label\"><span>SPONSORED<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"kg-cta-content\">\n<div class=\"kg-cta-image-container\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/storage.ghost.io\/c\/51\/f8\/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a\/content\/images\/2026\/02\/PrintFair-209-2-1.jpg\" alt=\"CTA Image\" data-image-dimensions=\"1200x675\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"kg-cta-content-inner\">\n<div class=\"kg-cta-text\">\n<p><b><strong>Brooklyn Fine Art Print Fair Returns to Powerhouse Arts This Week<\/strong><\/b><\/p>\n<p><span>Over 50 exhibitors, hands-on programming, and a juried print exhibition make up the fair\u2019s expanded second edition. April 9\u201312, 2026.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>                            Learn more<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<hr>\n<h2 id=\"community\">Community<\/h2>\n<figure class=\"kg-card kg-image-card kg-card-hascaption\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/storage.ghost.io\/c\/51\/f8\/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a\/content\/images\/2026\/04\/image-16-1.png\" class=\"kg-image\" alt loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1300\" height=\"731\"><figcaption><span>Antonella Gandini&#8217;s studio in Monzambano, Italy (photo courtesy Antonella Gandini)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h3 id=\"a-view-from-the-easel\">A View From the Easel<\/h3>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t foresee certain results, but I welcome the provocation of the material and the form.\u201d | Lakshmi Rivera Amin<\/p>\n<hr>\n<h2 id=\"member-comment\">Member Comment<\/h2>\n<p>Jozanne Rabyor on Hyperallergic\u2019s \u201c15 Shows to See in New York City This April\u201d:<\/p>\n<div class=\"kg-card kg-callout-card kg-callout-card-yellow\">\n<div class=\"kg-callout-text\">These round-ups are consistently wonderful. All your writers find old and new artists and galleries and shows to recommend and they comment so enticingly that I inevitably click on the venue and fantasize about adding this, that and the next to my own collection. I have limited funds and even more limited space, so it usually remains a game, but one of my favorites to play.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<hr>\n<h2 id=\"from-the-archive\">From the Archive<\/h2>\n<figure class=\"kg-card kg-image-card kg-card-hascaption\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/storage.ghost.io\/c\/51\/f8\/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a\/content\/images\/2026\/04\/image-23-1.png\" class=\"kg-image\" alt loading=\"lazy\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1125\"><figcaption><span>Ali Cherri, \u201cStanding Figure (Pow!)\u201d (2023), Mask Vili (Kongo), iron, xps, clay, sand, pigments, and pvac glue (image courtesy the artist and Imane Far\u00e8s, Paris)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h3 id=\"ali-cherri%E2%80%99s-muddy-affair\">Ali Cherri\u2019s Muddy Affair<\/h3>\n<p>The artist retells the myth of Gilgamesh through a meditation on mud, a primordial material and source of timeless storytelling. | Farah Abdessamad<\/p>\n<ul class=\"post-tags\">\n<li>\n                        Daily Newsletter\n                      <\/li>\n<li>\n                        Newsletter\n                      <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/section>\n<\/article>\n<section class=\"gh-content gh-canvas is-body\">\n<p>Spring in Upstate New York might just be my favorite time and place in the world\u2014\u00a0I love that sense of hope, renewal, and relief as those ceaseless gray days finally surrender to color. Speaking of, there&#8217;s some pretty great art on view in the region, as our favorite Upstate art writer, Taliesin Thomas, proves in her guide this month.<\/p>\n<p>Today, a new survey finds that art museums and organizations led by people of color are disproportionately understaffed, relying heavily on volunteer work to serve their communities. Also in the news,artist Ali Cherri, who won the Silver Lion Award for best film feature at the 2022 Venice Biennale, files a war crimes complaint against Israel for a Beirut strike that killed his parents. <\/p>\n<p>If you find yourself in need of a reprieve from earthly matters, Ed Simon and John Yau offer very different approaches to salvation in this issue: Salvador Dal\u00ed&#8217;s &#8220;Nuclear Mysticism,&#8221; on the one hand, and Leah Ke Yi Zheng&#8217;s contemporary divination on the other. <\/p>\n<p><em>\u2014Lisa Yin Zhang, associate editor<\/em><\/p>\n<hr>\n<figure class=\"kg-card kg-image-card kg-card-hascaption\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/storage.ghost.io\/c\/51\/f8\/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a\/content\/images\/2026\/04\/image-17-1-1.png\" class=\"kg-image\" alt loading=\"lazy\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1125\"><figcaption><span>Installation view of Sophie Kitching, \u201cBranches\u201d (2026) (photo courtesy Tyte gallery)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h3 id=\"10-exhibitions-to-see-in-upstate-new-york-this-april\">10 Exhibitions to See in Upstate New York This April<\/h3>\n<p>Lisa Karrer\u2019s \u201cwarm technology,\u201d Deirdre O\u2019Connell\u2019s loving portraits, Caleb Weintraub\u2019s fantastical realms, and more. | Taliesin Thomas<\/p>\n<hr>\n<div class=\"kg-card kg-cta-card kg-cta-bg-white kg-cta-immersive  kg-cta-has-img  \" data-layout=\"immersive\">\n<div class=\"kg-cta-sponsor-label-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"kg-cta-sponsor-label\"><span>SPONSORED<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"kg-cta-content\">\n<div class=\"kg-cta-image-container\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/storage.ghost.io\/c\/51\/f8\/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a\/content\/images\/2026\/04\/JPEG-image-2-2.jpeg\" alt=\"CTA Image\" data-image-dimensions=\"1200x675\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"kg-cta-content-inner\">\n<div class=\"kg-cta-text\">\n<p><b><strong>Call for Applications: 2026 Craft Archive Fellowship<\/strong><\/b><\/p>\n<p><span>The Center for Craft will award up to four $5,000 fellowships to support research on underrepresented craft histories, culminating in an article on Hyperallergic.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>                            Learn more<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<hr>\n<h2 id=\"news\">News<\/h2>\n<figure class=\"kg-card kg-image-card kg-card-hascaption\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/storage.ghost.io\/c\/51\/f8\/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a\/content\/images\/2026\/04\/image-18-1.png\" class=\"kg-image\" alt loading=\"lazy\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1125\"><figcaption><span>Visitors at the Anacostia Community Museum look at archival protest materials in the 2023 exhibition <\/span><i><em class=\"italic\">A Bold and Beautiful Vision: A Century of Black Arts Education in Washington, D.C., 1900-2000<\/em><\/i><span> (photo by Matailong Du, courtesy the Anacostia Community Museum and Museum Hue)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<ul>\n<li>A new report found that museums and cultural centers founded and led by people of color in the Northeast face severe staffing shortages, with over a third of responding institutions lacking a single full-time employee. <\/li>\n<li>Lebanese artist Ali Cherri has formally accused the Israeli military of committing a war crime for a strike that killed his parents in their Beirut apartment in 2024. <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<hr>\n<h2 id=\"feature\">Feature<\/h2>\n<figure class=\"kg-card kg-image-card kg-card-hascaption\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/storage.ghost.io\/c\/51\/f8\/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a\/content\/images\/2026\/04\/image-20-1.png\" class=\"kg-image\" alt loading=\"lazy\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1125\"><figcaption><span>Salvador Dal\u00ed, \u201cThe Sacrament of the Last Supper\u201d (1955) oil on canvas (photo courtesy National Gallery of Art)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h3 id=\"salvador-dal%C3%AD%E2%80%99s-frustrating-vision-of-the-divine\">Salvador Dal\u00ed\u2019s Frustrating Vision of the Divine<\/h3>\n<p>Having abandoned the profane for only the sacred, Dal\u00ed\u2019s \u201cNuclear Mysticism\u201d renounced the richness of experience for the aridity of metaphysics. | Ed Simon<\/p>\n<hr>\n<h2 id=\"from-our-critics\">From Our Critics<\/h2>\n<figure class=\"kg-card kg-image-card kg-card-hascaption\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/storage.ghost.io\/c\/51\/f8\/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a\/content\/images\/2026\/04\/image-19-1.png\" class=\"kg-image\" alt loading=\"lazy\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1125\"><figcaption><span>Installation view of Leah Ke Yi Zheng,\u00a0<\/span><i><em class=\"italic\">Change, I Ching (64 Paintings)<\/em><\/i><span> (2026) (photo Forrest Frederick for Bob, courtesy the Renaissance Society)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h3 id=\"leah-ke-yi-zheng%E2%80%99s-personal-i-ching\">Leah Ke Yi Zheng\u2019s Personal I Ching<\/h3>\n<p>The artist is synthesizing the divergent cultural histories of Western oil painting and Eastern ink painting into one. | John Yau<\/p>\n<hr>\n<div class=\"kg-card kg-cta-card kg-cta-bg-white kg-cta-immersive  kg-cta-has-img  \" data-layout=\"immersive\">\n<div class=\"kg-cta-sponsor-label-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"kg-cta-sponsor-label\"><span>SPONSORED<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"kg-cta-content\">\n<div class=\"kg-cta-image-container\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/storage.ghost.io\/c\/51\/f8\/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a\/content\/images\/2026\/02\/PrintFair-209-2-1.jpg\" alt=\"CTA Image\" data-image-dimensions=\"1200x675\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"kg-cta-content-inner\">\n<div class=\"kg-cta-text\">\n<p><b><strong>Brooklyn Fine Art Print Fair Returns to Powerhouse Arts This Week<\/strong><\/b><\/p>\n<p><span>Over 50 exhibitors, hands-on programming, and a juried print exhibition make up the fair\u2019s expanded second edition. April 9\u201312, 2026.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>                            Learn more<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<hr>\n<h2 id=\"community\">Community<\/h2>\n<figure class=\"kg-card kg-image-card kg-card-hascaption\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/storage.ghost.io\/c\/51\/f8\/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a\/content\/images\/2026\/04\/image-16-1.png\" class=\"kg-image\" alt loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1300\" height=\"731\"><figcaption><span>Antonella Gandini&#8217;s studio in Monzambano, Italy (photo courtesy Antonella Gandini)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h3 id=\"a-view-from-the-easel\">A View From the Easel<\/h3>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t foresee certain results, but I welcome the provocation of the material and the form.\u201d | Lakshmi Rivera Amin<\/p>\n<hr>\n<h2 id=\"member-comment\">Member Comment<\/h2>\n<p>Jozanne Rabyor on Hyperallergic\u2019s \u201c15 Shows to See in New York City This April\u201d:<\/p>\n<div class=\"kg-card kg-callout-card kg-callout-card-yellow\">\n<div class=\"kg-callout-text\">These round-ups are consistently wonderful. All your writers find old and new artists and galleries and shows to recommend and they comment so enticingly that I inevitably click on the venue and fantasize about adding this, that and the next to my own collection. I have limited funds and even more limited space, so it usually remains a game, but one of my favorites to play.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<hr>\n<h2 id=\"from-the-archive\">From the Archive<\/h2>\n<figure class=\"kg-card kg-image-card kg-card-hascaption\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/storage.ghost.io\/c\/51\/f8\/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a\/content\/images\/2026\/04\/image-23-1.png\" class=\"kg-image\" alt loading=\"lazy\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1125\"><figcaption><span>Ali Cherri, \u201cStanding Figure (Pow!)\u201d (2023), Mask Vili (Kongo), iron, xps, clay, sand, pigments, and pvac glue (image courtesy the artist and Imane Far\u00e8s, Paris)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h3 id=\"ali-cherri%E2%80%99s-muddy-affair\">Ali Cherri\u2019s Muddy Affair<\/h3>\n<p>The artist retells the myth of Gilgamesh through a meditation on mud, a primordial material and source of timeless storytelling. | Farah Abdessamad<\/p>\n<ul class=\"post-tags\">\n<li>\n                        Daily Newsletter\n                      <\/li>\n<li>\n                        Newsletter\n                      <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/section>\n<article class=\"gh-card post\">\n<figure class=\"gh-card-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/storage.ghost.io\/c\/51\/f8\/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a\/content\/images\/size\/w600\/2026\/04\/41_Angel-Applicant-Resize-to_-Facebook_Instagram---3000px-W--72dpi--jpg.jpg\" alt=\"Paul Klee: Other Possible Worlds\" loading=\"lazy\"><\/figure>\n<div class=\"gh-card-wrapper\">\n<h3 class=\"gh-card-title is-title\">Paul Klee: Other Possible Worlds<\/h3>\n<p class=\"gh-card-excerpt is-body\">The first US museum exhibition to focus on the artist\u2019s late work, produced in response to the fascism of the 1930s. On view at the Jewish Museum through July 26, 2026.\n<\/p>\n<footer class=\"gh-card-meta\"><span class=\"gh-card-author\">Jewish Museum<\/span><\/footer>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article class=\"gh-card post\">\n<figure class=\"gh-card-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/storage.ghost.io\/c\/51\/f8\/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a\/content\/images\/size\/w600\/2026\/03\/Copy-of-9.jpg\" alt=\"Summer Marathons in Painting and Drawing at the New York Studio School\" loading=\"lazy\"><\/figure>\n<div class=\"gh-card-wrapper\">\n<h3 class=\"gh-card-title is-title\">Summer Marathons in Painting and Drawing at the New York Studio School<\/h3>\n<p class=\"gh-card-excerpt is-body\">Join an immersive, two-week session and transform your studio practice. Online or in-person.<\/p>\n<footer class=\"gh-card-meta\"><span class=\"gh-card-author\">New York Studio School<\/span><\/footer>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article class=\"gh-card post\">\n<figure class=\"gh-card-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/storage.ghost.io\/c\/51\/f8\/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a\/content\/images\/size\/w600\/2026\/03\/033125_FineArtsBFAPaintingThesisExhibition_MP-22.jpg\" alt=\"Mondays at Pratt Institute: Weekly Openings of Work by Graduating Artists\" loading=\"lazy\"><\/figure>\n<div class=\"gh-card-wrapper\">\n<h3 class=\"gh-card-title is-title\">Mondays at Pratt Institute: Weekly Openings of Work by Graduating Artists<\/h3>\n<p class=\"gh-card-excerpt is-body\">Free and open to the public, Pratt Shows celebrate the school\u2019s graduating students. MFA and BFA work is on view this spring in Brooklyn, New York.<\/p>\n<footer class=\"gh-card-meta\"><span class=\"gh-card-author\">Pratt Institute<\/span><\/footer>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article class=\"gh-card post\">\n<figure class=\"gh-card-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/storage.ghost.io\/c\/51\/f8\/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a\/content\/images\/size\/w600\/2026\/03\/roselynnsstudiohyperallergic-1-.JPG\" alt=\"NYU Steinhardt Presents 2026 MFA Thesis Exhibitions\" loading=\"lazy\"><\/figure>\n<div class=\"gh-card-wrapper\">\n<h3 class=\"gh-card-title is-title\">NYU Steinhardt Presents 2026 MFA Thesis Exhibitions<\/h3>\n<p class=\"gh-card-excerpt is-body\">Part I: April 1\u201318, Part II: May 6\u201323. On view at 80WSE Gallery in New York\u2019s Greenwich Village. <\/p>\n<footer class=\"gh-card-meta\"><span class=\"gh-card-author\">NYU Steinhardt<\/span><\/footer>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<p>[analyse_source url=&#8221;https:\/\/hyperallergic.com\/art-and-springtime-in-upstate-ny\/&#8221;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>[analyse_image type=&#8221;featured&#8221; src=&#8221;&#8221;] Daily Newsletter Art and Springtime in Upstate NY Plus, solace in Leah Ke Yi Zheng\u2019s divine paintings, Ali Cherri accuses Israel of war crimes, and a revealing new survey of POC-led arts orgs. Hyperallergic April 6, 2026\u2014 4 min read Spring in Upstate New York might just be my favorite time and [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[226,69],"class_list":["post-1871369","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-politics","tag-crawlmanager","tag-hyperallergic-com"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1871369","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1871369"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1871369\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1871369"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1871369"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1871369"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}