Limited edition poster celebrates Otsego Lake
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Three Otsego County residents have donated their time and talents to
create a labor of love – a collectible poster produced especially for
the first ever Otsego Lake Festival, to be held July 9 in Lake Front
Park, Cooperstown. The trio is composed of Richard Walker, a
professional photographer from Schenevus, Scottie Baker, owner of
Natura Productions, a nature-graphic business based in Fly Creek, and
Peter Johngren of Hartwick, who provided technical services. The poster
is a kaleidoscopic assemblage of lake memorabilia and images. It will
be produced as a limited edition with the first 100 being signed and
numbered by Walker.
“There is so much to say about Otsego Lake’s beauty and importance,
its past and present, that it was difficult for us to decide what to
focus on for the poster,” Baker said. “Richard’s special style enabled
us to show the many faces of our lake.”
Walker and his wife, Elizabeth, specialize in photographic
compositions of antiques and memorabilia which tell a story or
illustrate a concept. Their work has been featured on the cover of
major magazines such as “Smithsonian,” “Adirondack Life,” “Luxury Gold
and Home,” “Aficionado” and “Readers’ Digest.” It has also been
featured locally through the New York State Historical Association
(NYSHA), National Baseball Hall of Fame, National Soccer Hall of Fame,
Brewery Ommegang, and the Adirondack Museum.
“I have wanted to create a collage about Otsego Lake for a long
time,” Walker said. “I swim, fish, and kayak here and love the changing
play light on the lake’s surface. The festival poster proposed by
Scottie was the perfect opportunity. Capturing the essence of Otsego
Lake in one scenic photograph is daunting, but we thought our style
could work.”
The poster is effectively a community effort. In addition to the
contributions made by Baker, Walker, and Johngren, objects to be
photographed and personal time were donated by Michael and Cory Moffat,
Gib and Lin Vincent, Paul D’Ambrosio, Michelle Murdock, Kathy Stocking,
Andy Stupperich of NYSHA, Wendy Littlefield, Ron Mitchell, of
Cooperstown Antiques, and Baker.
The festival poster, may be viewed and ordered through the Lake Festival website at www.otsegolakefestival.com, or by contacting Natura Productions at (607) 547-5356 or www.naturaproductions.com,
Cooperstown Art Association, Farmers’ Museum gift shop, Walker
Gallery/National Pastime or Davidson’s Jewelry/Augurs Bookstore. Signed
and numbered posters will be sold for $35. All others will sell for
$20. In the spirit of community participation in the festival,
Principally Prints, of Oneonta, will frame the posters at a 15 percent
discount.
A portion of the poster profits will go to the Otsego County Water
Quality Coordinating Committee (WQCC), the umbrella organizer and
sponsor of the festival. Among its many other activities, the WQCC
oversees the implementation of the Plan for the Management of the
Otsego Lake Watershed, approved by Otsego Lake municipalities in 1997.
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