Thomas Cole National Historic Site to Launch Hudson River School Art Trail Contest, 5/1

On May 1, 2013 the Thomas Cole National Historic Site and the Olana State Historic Site will launch the Hudson River School Art Trail contest featuring an artistic hiking trail that follows in the footsteps of America's premier landscape painters, and ends with the chance to win a weekend getaway to the Catskill Mountains.

The Hudson River School Art Trail features over 20 locations spanning the Hudson River Valley Region and New England. At each of the first eight sites along the Hudson Valley section of the Art Trail, a special metal plaque with a rubbing medallion has been installed, allowing visitors to do a pencil rubbing as a keepsake.

The contest encourages visitors to complete all eight rubbings in either their own notebook or in the official Art Trail Passport, which is available for purchase at the Thomas Cole National Historic Site and Olana State Historic Site. Upon completion, participants simply present the completed series of rubbings to representatives at the Visitor Center for either the Thomas Cole or Olana Historic Sites by November 3, 2013 to receive an official certificate of completion. The first 20 people to complete all eight rubbings and present them at one of the two visitor centers will receive a free copy of the newly released second edition of the Hudson River School Guidebook. Participants who complete the eight rubbings will also be entered in a special grand prize drawing for a chance to win a weekend getaway to the Catskills.

Each metal plaque features a QR code that can be scanned by smartphones for more information and a rubbing medallion with a drawing of the view in raised relief so that participants can easily capture the scene by placing a piece of paper over the design and rubbing it with pencil, crayon or charcoal. For more information about the Art Trail locations, directions, itinerary suggestions and more, visitwww.hudsonriverschool.org. Starting May 1, see offers.hudsonriverschool.org for complete contest information.

The Hudson River School Art Trail Contest is made possible by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew Cuomo and the New York State Legislature.