The exhibition, in the Museum’s Crossroads Gallery through September 6^th, will present more than 50 original photographs taken by Elliott Landy, official photographer of the Woodstock Festival.  Striving to raise the awareness of Americans about the anti-war movement, Landy began photographing demonstrations against the Vietnam War in 1967 while working for underground newspapers in New York City. He felt a profound connection to the music of this era and his growing reputation as a photographer gave him intimate access to some of the most important musicians of that time. The exhibition includes photographs of Bob Dylan, Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix, The Band, Richie Havens, Joe Cocker, Frank Zappa, Eric Clapton, Jim Morrison and others, along with images of the peace demonstrations.

The exhibition will be enhanced by objects from the Museum’s own collections, along with others from key personalities of the Woodstock Festival and from the public. Many items were offered after the Museum invited the community to loan Woodstock memorabilia for the exhibition. Objects on display will include such items as festival tickets, a program, poster and clothing worn at the festival, including a jacket and hat seen on the cover of Life magazine. There also will be objects from the private collection of Michael Lang, an organizer of the 1969 festival, such as the motorcycle Lang rode in an iconic scene from the movie “Woodstock.”

A panel discussion on Thursday, August 12^th  – “Woodstock: The Music, the People and the Times,” will feature Landy and the three surviving organizers of the festival – Lang, Artie Kornfeld and Joel Rosenman. They and other panelists will give perspective to this pivotal event in American history.  The moderator will be Parry Teasdale, the editor of the The Independent in Hinsdale, N.Y., who documented the original Woodstock festival using what was then revolutionary portable television technology.

The Museum plans other programming throughout the summer including craft activities, a Café Karaoke night on Friday, July 16th, and a free tie-dye workshop on Saturday, July 10th^th.  Registration for the workshop is required by July 8 and may be made by calling (518) 473-7154. Participants must bring a white or light-colored tee shirt.

            To celebrate the opening of the exhibition, the public is invited to attend “A Taste of New York” reception featuring foods and beverages from around New York State on Tuesday, June 22 from 7 to 9 p.m.  Special guests of the evening will include Melanie, who will perform some of her songs, Landy, Kornfeld, Rosenman and Lang.

The Woodstock exhibition has been made possible by Baum Image Group, Inc. of Valley Cottage, N.Y., with support from the Bethel Woods Center for the Arts, which owns the original Woodstock Festival site in Bethel, N.Y.

             The New York State Museum is a program of the New York State Department of Education, the University of the State of New York and the Office of Cultural Education. Started in 1836, the Museum has the longest continuously operating state natural history research and collection survey in the United States.  Located at the Empire State Plaza on Madison Avenue in Albany, the Museum is open daily from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. except on Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Day. Admission is free and the Museum is fully accessible. Further information about programs and events can be obtained by calling (518) 474-5877 or visiting the museum website at www.nysm.nysed.gov.