Writing and photography by Justin Negard "All you need is a pair of eyes and a mouth,” says Jim Henson’s Creature Shop puppet designer/builder James Wojtal. “With that, you have created the illusion of life where there is none. What we puppet builders and designers do is create the physical representation, and a talented performer breathes life into it.” This ...

Writing and Photography by Justin Negard What is New York? Is it the skyscrapers of Manhattan? Is it the suburban homes of Westchester? Is it the shores of Long Island? Living in this community, you might not give it much thought. We have access to Michelin 3-star restaurants. We can catch a Broadway show or concert in about an hour ...

Writing and Photography by Justin Negard When Dr. Harvey Cushing became a full-time neurosurgeon in 1904, brain tumor surgery still carried mortality rates of roughly 30 to 50 percent in most surgeons’ hands. But by 1910, Cushing reported a mortality rate of just 13 percent. “If you opened someone’s brain in 1900, they would just bleed out,” says Terry Dagradi, ...

Writing and Photography by Justin Negard You know it when you see it: the white cylindrical building along Fifth Avenue’s Museum Mile. Resembling more of an alien spacecraft than a building, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum stands out from the neighboring brick and limestone Beaux Arts institutions around it. There are no iconic columns to be found, such as the ...

Writing and Photography by Gia Miller When you tell someone you’re going to Corning for the weekend, odds are good they’ll respond with, “Like the glass?” And the answer, of course, is, “Yes, like the glass.” And while the Corning Museum of Glass (CMoG) is definitely a must-see-and-do, the town does have more to offer. There’s the Smithsonian-affiliated Rockwell Museum ...

Writing and Photography by Justin Negard “The purpose of architecture is to shelter and enhance man’s life on earth and to fulfill his belief in the nobility of his existence.” -Eero Saarinen, architect of the original TWA Terminal It’s 11 p.m. in the lobby of the TWA Hotel. Frank Sinatra echoes off the curved ceilings of the former airplane terminal, ...

Writing and Photography by Justin Negard Let’s face it. Winter in Westchester isn’t what it used to be. There are fewer fluffy snowscapes and frozen lakes and more parking lot slush and salty shoes. Kids are lucky to squeeze in one or two days of sleigh riding over the winter season, and the local ponds barely have enough ice to ...

Writing and Photography by Justin Negard Port Chester is changing so quickly; your favorite spot today could be a construction site tomorrow. It is a village in flux, reshaping street by street. And so, this is less of a story on what to do in Port Chester and more of a snapshot in time, showcasing where Port Chester is today ...

There’s something special, even magical, about live music with a beautiful, historic 1,400-acre property in the Hudson Valley as the backdrop. Whether it’s witnessing a captivating sunset while enjoying a concert or “dancing” under the stars at a DJ Swim Night in the lake, when the landscape becomes part of the show, memories are made. And that’s what happens every ...

Writing by Justin Negard Photography by Tomoko Rahenkamp and Justin Negard Mention Croton Falls to someone, and you’ll likely hear one word: charming. It may be due to the quaint storefronts, the romantic sounds of the train, or the Victorian homes lining the surrounding streets. Whatever the reason, Croton Falls is indeed charming, but there is much more to this ...

By Kaitlyn Hardy Photography by Justin Negard and Vincent Negard Once a stop along the Underground Railroad and now a burgeoning hub of art and culture, the streets of Peekskill are dotted with history. Jo-Ann Brody, the former owner of an art gallery in the town who is now the communications and gallery coordinator at the Hudson Valley Museum of ...

Writing & photography by Justin Negard Russel Wright wouldn’t let people in his house. At least not right away. Instead, visitors had to walk through the skinny forest trail just off the gravel driveway. They passed through a pergola draped in dense Dutchman’s pipe vines and headed towards the sound of rushing water. Depending on the time of day, Wright ...