CAZENOVIA – On Feb. 10, the National Trust for Historic Preservation announced the acceptance of the Dorothy Riester House and Studio at the Stone Quarry Hill Art Park into their prestigious Historic Artists’ Homes and Studios (HAHS) program.
Established in 1999, HAHS is a coalition of 48 independent museums that were once the homes and working studios of American artists.
The Dorothy Riester House and Studio (a.k.a. Hilltop House) is the former home of ceramicist, sculptor, author, preservation activist, and SQHAP founder Dorothy Riester (1916-2017).
The house was designed and built by Riester and her husband, Robert, with help from local contractors.
In 2014, Hilltop House — along with the original 23-acre property — was placed on the National Register of Historic Places for its significance as a highly intact example of a mid-twentieth century modern house and artist studio.
According to the register, “The building exemplifies mid-century house design with its use of common, ready-made materials and prominent front-gable massing, large expanses of windows, and open interior plan. However, unlike a typical mid-century house, the building also incorporates elements of Dorothy Riester’s sculptural background and her desire to integrate nature into her art.”
Hillltop House is one of four new sites to be accepted into HAHS this year.
All four sites are the preserved homes and studios of significant American women artists.
Hilltop House Director Sarah Tietje-Mietz said she hopes HAHS membership will help increase the visibility of the site and its mission.
“Having Dorothy’s creative life examined as part of the larger dialog of artists’ homes and studios will develop a more profound understanding of the importance of a life lived in art — especially one lived by a 20th century woman artist,” she said. “We are honored and beyond excited to be part of a community that both celebrates the range of environments shaped by artists and challenges itself to expand the traditional notions of historical importance.”
According to a Feb. 10 HAHS press release, the four new sites will help further the program’s goal of representing the full breadth and diversity of the country’s artistic legacy through preserved places nationwide.
The sites also capture the spirit of the National Trust for Historic Preservation larger initiative, “Where Women Made History” — a national campaign to identify, honor and elevate places across the country where women have changed their communities and the world.
“The holistic vision that Dorothy and Robert created in Cazenovia wonderfully conveys the idea of artist home and studio as an incubator for ideas, experimentation, and exploration, which is present at so many HAHS sites,” said HAHS Senior Program Manager Valerie Balint. “Here, visitors can immerse themselves in the environment of an artist who did not feel bound by any one discipline or artistic practice. The art park she created exemplifies the desire of so many artists to create spaces and opportunities, not only for their own work, but for fellow artists. To stand on the hill and to look out at the view, as I have done, is to experience first-hand the potent power of place that is at the core of these preserved places of creativity. Dorothy was a groundbreaker, a woman and artist who lived and created on her own terms, and her integration of her life with her art remains inspiring today.”
Balint also noted that Riester’s preservation and land conservation advocacy align with the ethos of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, and that she believes Hilltop House’s innovative programming and digital engagement will serve as models for other HAHS members to emulate.”
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Hilltop House is temporarily closed for in-person tours. However, according to Tietje-Mietz, there is still a lot going on at the site.
“We have partnered with the Syracuse University Museum Studies program on an archive and collection project,” she said. “There are also a few lectures being planned for preservation month in May, and the house and studio will be a destination on the upcoming HAHS Virtual Road Trip 2021. Local artist Geoffrey Navias continues to creatively activate Dorothy’s A-frame studio as our resident artist, and visitors to the Art Park are welcome to peek through the many windows of the A-frame to visually experience his artistic practice.”
Tietje-Mietz added that she hopes to begin hosting tours again this upcoming season.
SQHAP is located at 3883 Stone Quarry Rd., Cazenovia. The park offers a unique environment for artists to create and exhibit their work in natural and gallery settings while also working to provide a space for the community to explore and appreciate the natural world and interact with art and artists.
For more information on Hilltop House, visit sqhap.org/hilltophouse or follow “Hilltop House and Studio” on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
Sign up for the SQHAP monthly newsletter at sqhap.org.
The National Trust for Historic Preservation is a privately funded nonprofit organization that works to save America’s historic places. Additional information is available at savingplaces.org.
To learn more about HAHS, visit artistshomes.org.
