Abandoned mills become massive new art space in Catskill – Times Union

"When it comes to development, when you do it right, it really is a rising-tide-lift-all-boats type of scenario," said Stef Halmos, the artist and developer who, in 2017, began transforming three abandoned mills in the Village of Catskill into an 85,000 square-foot arts campus called Foreland that opened this month.

"I feel like the ripple effect of Foreland will be very positive just by the nature of who occupies these buildings and what the mission is of their new use."

These three buildings, two of which are now connected by a floating glass pedestrian bridge, were constructed in the mid-1800s and originally used to produce uniforms for Union Soldiers during the Civil War. They were empty for decades before Halmos re-imagined and revitalized them to house 30 artists' studios, three art galleries, two event spaces, and two eateries one cafe that is already open, and a restaurant that will follow.

Related: Exploring the mellow mountain village of Catskill

"The Foreland building has been under construction by multiple contractors for the past 15 years, Patrick McCulloch, Village of Catskill Planning Board Chairman told Times Union: Hudson Valley via email. Stef Halmos had the right vision to take over this project and see it to completion.

Now that it is finally complete, the challenge will be to keep the entire operation afloat especially in a mellow little river town like Catskill. And yet, Halmos has more than high hopes. She has real estate development in her blood, an artistic vision that celebrates both old and new, and a vested interest in improving the village where she set down roots with her wife and toddler.

"It's a complex eco-system with a lot going on to make these old buildings be alive," Halmos noted. "Multiple revenue streams keep the project stable." The galleries and caf will give the public access to the space, bringing life into Foreland after four years of development. And this coming weekend, Saturday, August 28 and Sunday, August 29 from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., Foreland is partnering with Upstate Art Weekendand New Art Dealers Alliance (NADA)on an exhibition featuring artists working in Upstate New York.

"There are over 100 artists that are exhibiting and just by the nature of the exhibition, you'll be able to walk through two of our three buildings," Halmos said.

Caitlin MacBride is among the artists who have rented out one of Foreland's 30 artist studios. "I love the historical details of it being an old mill because so many of my paintings are about history and design, so this environment really inspires me, she said. Pictured is her painting, Mill," 2021, oil on panel, that will be included in Foreland and NADA Art's exhibition during Upstate Art Weekend.

Visitors can also check out Foreland's inaugural show in the ground floor gallery, a joint exhibition between Rachel Uffnerand Mrs.

While there's definitely an element of pie-in-the-sky artistic-utopia vibe built into the Foreland's vision board, there's also a business sensibility behind the project, too. Those visiting Foreland's campus could potentially become future studio renters, or they may keep Foreland in mind for future weddings and parties, or at the very least they might support their in-house caf, Willa's, by grabbing a coffee and a snack.

Foreland's heart and soul is in its affordable art studios, which Halmos recognized were in short supply when she lived in Brooklyn and was seeking a workspace for her own art. Halmos's studio work includes sculptures, photographs, and objects. While she doesn't have any of her on art on display at Foreland at the moment, she is in the process of creating a new body of work, with some forthcoming exhibitions in the pipeline. Halmos's own Foreland studio is a 1,500-square-foot space, which is partly used for her studio work and partly used for the Foreland staff headquarters.

"The prices were so extravagant for crappy [Brooklyn] studios. People were paying prime money for [a] subpar product," Halmos said of the studios. "I thought, 'I can do it better. I'm an artist and I want to build a studio that I want to use.'"

As she and her wife started spending more time upstate, her dream studio site appeared. "Just by a total fluke, I was having an ice cream across the creek from [what is now] Foreland and I was staring at that beautiful building," Halmosrecalled. "I fell in love with it immediately and said, 'That's my building. That's it.'"

"Just by a total fluke, I was having an ice cream across the creek from [what is now] Foreland and I was staring at that beautiful building, Halmos, pictured here, recalled. "I fell in love with it immediately and said, 'That's my building. That's it."

Halmos says the Foreland studios are affordable pricing is available upon request, following an application process that shows proof of work but this isn't a non-profit organization. The artists' rent helps sustain the project. "My rule of thumb is that you're going to pay 30 percent less for 100 percent better of a product. You get it all with these studios everybody has a lot of light, big, beautiful, tall windows," Halmos said.

Caitlin MacBride,a painter who recently relocated to Hudson and rented a studio at Foreland, agrees the new space is an upgrade.

"I spent 15 years living in Brooklyn and this studio would have been way out of my price zone there. Its large and has wide floorboards and exposed beams. I love the historical details of it being an old mill because so many of my paintings are about history and design so this environment really inspires me, she said. "Also as someone who is still relatively new to the area its been such a gift I feel like the studio has already provided me with new friends and an amazing community of makers."

Ninety percent of the studios have been rented to date by an array of artists and makers, including painter Shara Hughes, multidisciplinary artist Lyle Ashton Harris, filmmaker Peggy Ahwesh, and sculptor Marc Swanson.

Since Halmos first laid eyes on the trio of buildings in 2017, she also started a family. Now the mother of an 18-month-old child, she joked, "Restoring these old buildings took longer and was more draining that growing and giving birth to an human."

Two of the 1800s-era buildings are connected by a floating glass pedestrian bridge.

Though Halmos is somewhat new to Catskill and new real estate development, her work on Foreland shows reverence for the buildings' past. Halmos began the project with a focus on preservation, spending a year and a half on structural remediation that is, dealing with all the engineering elements to stabilize the buildings and improve their health, safety and longevity. Her respect for the buildings' history shines through her artistic vision.

"We don't patina new things to look old and we didn't let the old things look new. We let them live together to show that there are a lot of people who have done work on this building before me and there will be many here after me," Halmos explained. "If we had to replace a beam or a floor system, we would use new wood wide planks, tongue and groove and let it show that it's new against some of the old things. You might see one column that is this big chunky piece of fresh timber, but the old one next to it has that patina of age."

Clearly, Halmos is looking to build on the good bones that already exist in Foreland and in the Village of Catskill, too. She mentioned the kindness and support of the town boards, the Department of Public Works, and the local police throughout her project.

"It's really bad for a town when giant footprints sit empty, she said. Statistically, it keeps growth stagnant. And so, just from the most basic standpoint, having these buildings full and increasing the amount of bodies that are coming in and out will be really positive. All these people want places to eat, they want places to go they want to enjoy life in such a beautiful little town."

Others are also looking forward to the role Foreland will play in the community. "Foreland is in the heart of our village, said McCulloch. We cant wait to see what their future holds."

Hudson Valley Art, Music and Culture

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Abandoned mills become massive new art space in Catskill - Times Union