Season 10: Year in Review

Since 2010, sustainability and climate resiliency have been at the core of Basilica Hudson’s mission, starting when co-founders Melissa Auf der Maur and Tony Stone reclaimed Basilica’s raw industrial space on the Hudson River and turned it into a solar-powered cultural destination. 

In 2020, we launched BASILICA GREEN: our mission to increase climate action through innovative programming, which builds on our longstanding commitment to the Hudson waterfront and local environmental advocacy. From public art installations that asked viewers to contemplate their relationship to the natural world, to the eye-opening Climate Action Film Festival presented with SunCommon, to our Farm & Flea Virtual Market supporting local, sustainable online shopping from small businesses, BASILICA GREEN formalized an environment element in our programming that we aim to incorporate across all disciplines.

BASILICA FARM & FLEA GOES VIRTUAL

For the past eight years, Basilica Hudson has held the Basilica Farm & Flea Holiday Market: epic, large-scale anti-Black-Friday community market celebrating the Hudson Valley’s creative entrepreneurial pursuits. This year, with the pandemic causing all to pause 2020 in-person programming, we moved the market online to connect our community of thoughtful shoppers to a gallery of 70+ local vendors’ online stores. At a time when huge online retail felt unavoidable, the Basilica Farm & Flea Virtual Market allowed shoppers to find quality goods, support independent small businesses and help sustain our local economy.

“This pandemic is hitting hard on our cultural and social livelihoods, so sticking together locally and putting our creative minds together is how we will get through this challenging time. The silver lining has made itself clear to all engaged and living in our dynamic region, and we feel so fortunate to be a part of that.” – Melissa Auf der Maur, Basilica Hudson Co-Founder and Director

In addition to the online market, we ran a promotional campaign on our social media to highlight participating vendors and their products. Program partner Elise McMahon of LikeMindedObjects also conducted Instagram Live interviews with herbalist, activist and educator Lauren Giambrone of Good Fight Herb Co., Tiffany Garriga of Moisturize Me & the Black Entrepreneur Market, and regenerative farmers Freya & Melany Dobson of Hudson Hemp & Treaty. These conversations illuminated the multifaceted challenges and joys of running a small community business, and helped us engage in how to best support our network of local makers. 

To help businesses transition to online shopping, and with the support of the City of Hudson Tourism Board, the Basilica Farm & Flea Virtual Market also hosted an educational webinar and product photography session for free to past vendors and any Hudson-based businesses.

“Small businesses don’t have the budgets to compete with big corporations so we often get lost. Having BFF support local artists and makers via its platform is like a badge of honor and consumers recognize that. The photography was really wonderful, too! I appreciated that special personal touch with the virtual market.” – Basilica Farm & Flea Virtual Market Vendor

BASILICA CONVERSATION SERIES

This past fall, BASILICA GREEN inspired the launch of the Basilica Conversation Series to engage and activate our audience on the urgent issues of climate and socio/economic inequity. Basilica Hudson Co-Founder and Director Melissa Auf der Maur facilitated these online conversations, speaking with Elise McMahon of LikeMindedObjects on how to build a more local, just and friendly economy; artist and organizer Shanekia McIntosh on being an artist in Hudson and HEART (Hudson Emergency Artist Response Team), a mutual aid grant for BIPOC artists negatively affected by COVID-19; Camae Ayewa of Moor Mother and on intersectionality and art, Ayewa’s musical journey and environmental racism; and finally, a live panel discussion about the connections between the climate crisis and challenging social and economic issues our communities face, featuring City of Hudson elected officials, climate policy advocates, social and economic justice advocates, youth organizers, storytellers and global climate crisis specialists. 

Edward Morris of Toolshed also led a conversation between artists Mary Mattingly and Anita Glesta, who both had work on display at Basilica, about watersheds, cultivating ecological understanding and the role of public art in imagining a sustainable future.

KICKSTARTER

Speaking of sustainability – our organization itself could not have sustained without our resilient neighbors’ and network’s generous support. 

Instead of hosting our biennial Pioneering People Basilica Benefit, Basilica Hudson launched a month-long Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign to help us recover from a 70% loss of income due to COVID-19. 

The outpouring of support we received was incredible to witness. In just 30 days, our community of steadfast supporters — both returning and brand new — helped us raise above and beyond what we thought was possible. THANK YOU to everyone who donated to our campaign, who shared it with a friend or contributed a reward. 

These funds allowed Basilica to get through 2020 and better strategize for the unknowns of 2021. Your generosity during a tumultuous time for all has been humbling.

SUPPORTERS & PARTNERS: LikeMindedObjects, The City of Hudson Tourism Board, Elise McMahon, Alex Petraglia of the Hudson Business Coalition, Hillary France of Hudson Wylde, Angelina Dreem of Dreem Reality Inc., Stewart’s Shops, Green Mountain Energy, SunCommon, CYCLEFFECT, Toolshed, Kickstarter, Basilica Hudson Board Of Directors, Rebekkah Smith Aldrich, Annie Bielski, Joshua M. Cohen, Susan Danziger, James Esber, Cora Fisher, Rebecca Foon, Anita Glesta, Haley Josephs, Patton Hindle, Mayor Kamal Johnson, Samia Khan, Dylan Kraus, Jim Krewson, Mary Mattingly, Shanekia McIntosh, Sayler/Morris, Moor Mother, New Albion Records, Amanda Palmer, Elvis Perkins, Kris Perry, Patty Schemel, Sacred Bones Records, Brandon Stosuy, Rufus Wainwright, Jorn Weisbrodt and Rebecca Wolff.