It’s not often that you see a video game and toilet paper together in an exhibition. It’s even more unusual when both are highlighted as historic artifacts. But the Capital Region of New York has such a varied history that this pairing, along with forty-eight other items, will partner together to tell their stories in The Capital Region in 50 Objects.
Each region of the country has its own distinctive history and culture that set it apart from others. The Capital Region of New York—consisting of Albany, Rensselaer, Schenectady, and Saratoga Counties— is no different. So what is it that gives the Capital Region its identity? What historic events, people, ideas, and objects have shaped its character? And even more challenging, is it possible to represent the Capital Region’s distinctiveness in fifty objects? The Albany Institute began asking these same questions more than three years ago when it sent surveys to nearly sixty museums and cultural organizations throughout the region. Through partnership with the Times Union, the Institute was also able to ask readers to submit their ideas based on such themes as Arts, Sports, & Entertainment; Science & Technology; Politics; Industry, Commerce, & Transportation; Life & Society. Then, after reviewing the responses, a committee worked to select fifty topics to represent a diverse history of the region. Our new exhibition, The Capital Region in 50 Objects, will show the results of this collaborative project.
The process of selecting fifty objects to represent the diverse history of the region was not easy, but thanks to the participation of numerous museums, historical societies, business entities, and private individuals the Institute has been able to assemble fifty objects that tell an amazing story of the Capital Region over the past four hundred years. Some of the objects in the exhibition will be immediately recognized as Capital Region icons, such as Albany’s beloved Nipper, the RCA dog that looks down from his rooftop perch on Broadway. Other objects, such as the Witenagemot oak peace tree from Knickerbocker Historical Society in Schaghticoke, may be little known to visitors, but the old oak tree represents a profoundly important event that took place in 1676 with the formalization of a peace treaty among English colonists, Mohawks, Mohicans, and Hoosacs, all of whom inhabited the area around the junction of the Hudson and Hoosick Rivers.
What else is in the exhibition? Let’s just say you’ll find objects such as an early automobile and a ticket booth, two cannons and a rocket booster, plus much more. Come and see if your favorite objects made the list.
In addition to the exhibition, family programs, special lectures, and demonstrations will broaden our appreciation of the Capital Region’s distinctive identity.
Click here for the full list of objects included in the exhibition.
The Capital Region in 50 Objects was planned in partnership with the Times Union. This exhibition has been made possible by the New York State Council on the Arts. Additional funding has been provided by the New York Council for the Humanities and the Hudson River Valley National Heritage Area.
