Samuel Yellin: Restoring Historic Ironworks
Rachel Miller and Timothy Miller of Spirit Ironworks in Bayport, N.Y., will give a lecture at the Suffolk County Vanderbilt Museum on Restoring Historic Ironworks, with a focus on Samuel Yellin – Thursday, April 18, 2024, from 7:00 to 8:30 pm.
Samuel Yellin was born in 1884 to a Jewish family in Ukraine. At the age of 11, he was apprenticed to a master ironsmith and completed his apprenticeship in 1900 at age 16. He traveled throughout Europe, emigrated to the United States, and settled in Philadelphia. He set up a blacksmith shop there and began to build his reputation.
From museums to skyscrapers, to private homes, churches, hotels, banks, and universities, Yellin left his mark on the American architectural landscape.
His metal designs, craftsmanship and artistry can be seen throughout the country. He was sought after by the elite for his skills and creativity, and his legacy lives on, not only in his works but also through his family business, passed down from generation to generation – from Samuel to his son Harvey, to his granddaughter Claire Yellin, who oversees the Samuel Yellin Metalworks Company today.
Rachel Miller and Timonth Miller have recently restored the 18-foot weathervane that once topped the bell tower above the entrance to the mansion courtyard. This major undertaking gives them unique insight into Yellin’s works and a rare opportunity for attendees to see images of his Vanderbilt work and to hear first-hand about the restoration process and its challenges.
This intriguing lecture will take place in the Suffolk County Vanderbilt Museum’s Charles and Helen Reichert Planetarium Theater. Support for the lecture is generously provided by the Robert David Lion Gardiner Foundation.
Tickets: $10 | Members free
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Storytime Under Stars: Good Books and Stargazing
The Vanderbilt’s next Storytime Under the Stars will be on Sunday, April 14, at 6:00 pm. A live narrator reads books as selected pictures are projected on the Planetarium dome.
Sponsored by Bank of America
Join us for a special evening of storytelling and stargazing in the Reichert Planetarium. All children are invited to wear their comfiest pajamas and bring their favorite stuffed animal.
A live narrator at the front of the theater will bring selected picture books to life, with pages projected onto the Planetarium dome so families can enjoy the illustrations and follow along. Between stories, an astronomy educator will explore seasonal constellations visible from here on Long Island.
Admission fee: $8 per person | $6 for members.
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Planetarium to Premiere Laser AC/CD Show
The Vanderbilt Museum’s Reichert Planetarium will premiere Laser AC/DC – a new show that features the popular music of the legendary Australian rock band – on Friday, April 12 at 9:00 pm. On Saturday, April 13, Laser Grateful Dead will return to the Planetarium at 9:00 pm.
Laser AC/DC will be shown on Fridays at 9:00 pm through May 17. The band’s groundbreaking classic hard rock from the 70s, 80s, and 90s comes to life in this laser spectacular.
Songs include For Those About to Rock, Dirty Deeds, Money Talks, Hard as a Rock, Shot Down in Flames, and many more!
Laser Grateful Dead will be shown on Saturdays at 9:00 pm through May 18.
America’s greatest cosmic rock & roll band — from kaleidoscopic psychedelia to homespun country rock to epic live jams and beyond – The Grateful Dead created songs that are woven into the very fabric of music itself. Now experience “The Dead” on a whole other level – through laser light!
Songs include Touch of Grey, Fire on the Mountain, Truckin’, Scarlet Begonias, Ripple, and many more!
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‘Arrizza Under the Stars’: Live in the Planetarium
Local artist and musician Yannaki Arrizza will perform Arrizza Under the Stars in a new, live, exclusive performance on Sunday, April 21, in the Planetarium. His brilliant soundscapes are accompanied by stunning laser lights and immersive imagery
Arrizza Under the Stars is a new, exclusive planetarium live performance by local artist and musician Yannaki Arrizza, based on his recent 2022 album release Astronomia. The music includes brilliant electronic soundscapes that combine digital and analog synthesizer sounds along with modern textures provided by the latest digital audio technologies.
Astronomia is reminiscent of the soundtrack for the popular Netflix original Stranger Things, combined with deeper experimentations in electronic and ambient realms similar to the popular synth sounds of the 1970s and early 1980s often heard in science-fiction films of the time. The words thought-provoking, hopeful, mysterious, and moody come to mind.
Yannaki’s music is a perfect complement (or maybe it’s the other way around!) to the spacey visual landscapes the planetarium is capable of providing with its cutting-edge fulldome video technology. Audiences can expect to be transported into immersive worlds and interstellar mediums that transcend both space and time and where the only limit is the imagination. This live performance includes artistic landscapes, original fulldome 3D artwork, projections of starfields, and deep-space objects, and includes colorful laser lights through a haze of fog.
This one-time performance is exclusive and can be seen only at the Reichert Planetarium!
CDs and merchandise will be available for purchase.
Reichert Planetarium Director Dave Bush, says “We are thrilled to be working with Yannaki. He is such a motivated and talented musician. His new album, Astronomia, is a perfect match for the planetarium. It has been so much fun creating and combining the images and lasers to go along with such an incredible piece of musical work. I have personally become a fan! The audience is in for an amazing experience.”
Yannaki Arrizza was born and raised in a diverse multi-ethnic background where art and music were abundant in his life. Yannaki is a self-taught Latin/New Age/World guitarist and multi-instrumental artist based in the Long Island, N.Y. area. He learned his craft during his formative years as a growing musician. His first love was the guitar, and grew out of listening to a variety of Latin American, Mediterranean, and Middle Eastern music. He later built upon a repertoire of Spanish guitar combined with the sounds of New Age and Electronic music.
Eventually, Yannaki began to dabble with keyboards and synthesizers. With influences ranging from Yanni, Jean Michel Jarre, Kitaro, and Tangerine Dream, he created a unique combination of Spanish guitar and electronic instrumentations that would dominate his future releases. His synth-oriented music is described as chill Electronica with New Age instrumentation and sensibility combined with the otherworldly sounds and textures of science fiction.
“The Astronomia album was born out of my deep heartfelt love of space, a dedication to the sheer grandeur and beauty of the sacred cosmos. I am so excited to perform at the Reichert Planetarium, my wish is to share the experience with you all.. The combination of my spacey otherworldly selections and the cutting-edge fulldome video technology the planetarium provides will create an exclusive one-of-a-kind spectacle. It will dazzle the senses and create an excitement and wonder that will bring joy to one’s heart.” -Yannaki Arrizza
Tours Explore Vanderbilt Architecture and Collections
Take an intriguing walking tour of the Vanderbilt Estate with knowledgeable Museum educators. Learn about the history of the Eagle’s Nest estate; Warren & Wetmore’s design and exterior architectural details of the 24-room Spanish Revival mansion; and the striking ironwork of Samuel Yellin, considered the greatest iron artisan of the early 20th century, and visit the marine, natural history, and cultural artifact collections
Created by the Vanderbilt Museum Education Department, the first 2024 tour will be offered on Friday, June 28, from 12:00 to 1:00 pm. Others are scheduled for July 27, August 25, September 28, and October 20.
Tickets, which include general admission, are available for purchase ONLY at the door: Adults $16; seniors/students $15; children under 12, $14; and members free.
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Beth Laxer-Limmer, Associate Director of Education, said, “The grounds are beautiful during the summer and the walking tour is a perfect way to be introduced to the history of the estate. There is an abundance of beauty in the eclectic architecture and the unique details that reflect William Vanderbilt’s interests.”
William K. Vanderbilt II (1878-1944) spent summers at his Eagle’s Nest estate and mansion on Northport Bay between 1910 and 1944. He and his wife, Rosamond, hosted intimate gatherings and entertained well-known guests, such as the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, Pierre Cartier, Conde Nast, Charles Lindbergh, and the Tiffanys. Eagle’s Nest is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Journey Through Space? Step Right This Way.
The Reichert Planetarium – with full-dome video, surround sound, and 197 comfortable new seats – will take you on enthralling, immersive journeys through the Solar System.
On Friday and Saturday nights, you can enjoy two amazing astronomy shows and very popular laser music shows.
The Planetarium offers great daytime programming for children and adults Friday through Sunday
On Friday at 8:00 pm, it’s FREE to observe the night sky in the Observatory (weather permitting).
Show ScheduleName a New Chair in the Reichert Planetarium
When you name a new chair in the Vanderbilt Reichert Planetarium chair, you support innovative planetarium education and entertainment programming.
Observe a milestone, honor a loved one, or name a chair for your family or organization.
Dedicate | Celebrate | Recognize | Memorialize
Your nameplate will remain in place for the life of the seat. (It does not reserve the use of the seat.)
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Give a Unique Gift That Will Last a Lifetime
Looking for a fresh, unique, everlasting gift for a loved one?
Purchase and engrave a brick that will become a permanent part of the Vanderbilt Museum.
Your donation will help the Vanderbilt to bring outstanding science, history, and art education to more than 25,000 students annually.
Your brick will be installed and displayed in your favorite brick walkway around the Vanderbilt Mansion and Terrace, or on the 43-acre grounds of the beautiful waterfront Estate.
For more information, email jaimie@vanderbiltmuseum.org.
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‘Laser Taylor Swift’ Extended through September 1
Showings of the Vanderbilt Reichert Planetarium‘s wildly popular new show, Laser Taylor Swift, have been extended through September 1. If you were not able to see one of her shows on the Eras tour, Laser Taylor Swift is the next best thing!
With more than 200 million records sold, a shelf full of Grammys, and an army of fans, Taylor Swift is an inspiration for generations. This dynamic show takes her biggest hits and brings them to life in dazzling laser light.
Tickets: $18. (Free for Museum members.)
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Setlist: You Need To Calm Down, Love Story, Anti-Hero Exile, Look What You Made Me Do, Willow, Lavender Haze, I Knew You Were Trouble, Blank Space, You Belong With Me, We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together, Shake It Off.
‘Haunting Menagerie’, Museum’s First Outdoor Sculpture Exhibition
Wendy Klemperer
On Earth Day, April 22, 2023, the Vanderbilt Museum debuted Wendy Klemperer: Wrought Taxonomies, the first exhibition of outdoor sculpture at the historic summer estate of William Kissam Vanderbilt II.
Wendy Klemperer’s sculptures—a haunting assemblage of animal forms that span imaginary, endangered, familiar, and exotic species—celebrate natural history and the nonhuman world through evocative interactions with the surrounding environment.
Using materials salvaged from scrapyards, she composes ecological narratives that respond to the history and collections of Suffolk County’s first public park and museum. Her brilliant use of gestural lines captures the spectator’s attention and invites museumgoers to reflect on the relationship between an interest in animal life and the incessant push of human industry.
Wrought Taxonomies is the inaugural exhibition in the Vanderbilt Museum’s outdoor sculpture program and the institution’s second exhibition of contemporary art focused on the relationship between culture and animals. Visitors will see large pieces visitors as they stroll the grounds of the Vanderbilt, one of the few remaining Long Island Gold Coast mansions. Smaller pieces suspended from trees wait to be discovered along the Vanderbilt’s hiking trail. Other works will be found near garden areas and the Marine Museum.
The Vanderbilt Museum occupies the former Gold Coast mansion and estate of William Kissam Vanderbilt II, the great-grandson of Cornelius Vanderbilt and a pioneer of American motorsport. Located in Centerport on the north shore of Long Island, it is renowned for its extensive marine and natural history collections, Spanish revival architecture, and picturesque parklands.
All sculptures are viewable with general admission to the Museum grounds. Educational programs and workshops associated with the themes and content of Wendy Klemperer: Wrought Taxonomies will be offered throughout the exhibition. Special thanks are due to the Robert David Lion Gardiner Foundation, whose generous support made Wrought Taxonomies possible. The exhibition will run through April 2025.
Visitors are encouraged, during these weeks of mild autumn weather, to enjoy a picnic on the grounds.
Vanderbilt Wine Supports Education, Preservation
The Suffolk County Vanderbilt Museum has partnered with Old York Cellars to create a special selection of wines – your purchase will support the Museum’s preservation efforts and education programs.
Eagle’s Nest, the waterfront estate of William K. Vanderbilt II, is the home of the Vanderbilt Museum and Charles and Helen Reichert Planetarium.
Help us preserve this vital piece of local and national history. STEM education programs are based on Vanderbilt’s marine, natural history, and cultural artifact collections. Educational planetarium offerings are provided to more than 25,000 schoolchildren each year. Please purchase wine today and support our mission.
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