Upstate Art Weekend (UAW) is an artist-forward, region-rooted arts platform dedicated to amplifying artists, organizations, and creative communities throughout the Hudson Valley and Catskills, while fostering meaningful exchange with aligned creative communities beyond the region.
Founded in 2020, UAW began as an annual festival celebrating the cultural vibrancy of Upstate New York. Today, UAW functions as both its flagship annual event and a broader platform—supporting artists, strengthening cultural networks, and deepening public connection to art, people, and place through multiple initiatives.
At the core of UAW’s work is a commitment to centering artists’ voices and practices while honoring the organizations, institutions, and individuals who shape regional creative ecosystems. UAW advances this mission through artist-forward programming and region-rooted partnerships that prioritize care, reciprocity, and long-term impact.
Upstate Art Weekend (UAW): June 25 - 29, 2026. UAW’s flagship annual event brings together artists, organizations, and audiences across the Hudson Valley and Catskills, inviting exploration of exhibitions, programs, and cultural spaces throughout the region.
Open Studios by UAW: May 16-17, 2026. An intimate, yet region-wide initiative where creatives across the Hudson Valley and Catskills open their studios to the public—strengthening visibility, access, and connection to art, people, and place.
Field Trips by UAW. Curated, place-based journeys to cities and regions beyond UAW’s home region, spotlighting creative communities that share UAW’s artist-forward, region-rooted values. Field Trips are grounded in exchange rather than extraction and prioritize trust, reciprocity, and curatorial intention.
Land Acknowledgement
The participants of UAW are located throughout the region that is now known as the Hudson Valley, the shared ancestral land of the Lenape, Mohican, Schaghticoke, Haudenosaunee, and Wappinger peoples, who were forced from their lands through colonialism and genocide. We acknowledge that these Native peoples were the original stewards of this beautiful land on which we come together and celebrate the region's cultural vibrancy, and that these peoples continue residing on these lands today. We acknowledge, recognize, and honor the indigenous communities of this region from the past, present, and future.
This land acknowledgement is only a starting point and will be updated as we continue to grow and learn about the Native stewards of this land.
Courtesy of PS21 Chatham