I’m so excited to announce that Francesco Mastalia, our friend & local photographer, will be at the January 31st market to sign his newest book “Organic: Farmers & Chefs of the Hudson Valley”! If you haven’t seen his beautiful pictures depicting local farmers & chefs in their natural environments, then you’re in for a treat! Stop by the market from 10a-2p to get a copy of the book & have it signed–not just by Francesco, but also Cheryl Rogowski & Heather Kurosz, who are two of the many local chefs & farmers featured in “Organic”. In addition to incredible pictures of the people who help feed you, each photo is accompanied by an interview–some of them are really inspiring and will help you look at the food on your plate in a new way (even the veggies that you didn’t think you liked!). Here’s a little more about the book in Francesco’s words:
The Hudson Valley has become an epicenter for the local, organic, sustainable food movement. With its rich agricultural land, the awareness for sustainable living, and the growing demand for local, organic food, the ‘locavore’ farm-to-table movement has become a way of life in the Hudson Valley.“Organic” is one of the most misunderstood and often misused words describing food today. In narrating their stories, the farmers and chefs share their philosophy about what it means to grow and live organically and sustainably. “Organic” is not just about growing and producing food, it is about the life of our planet. It is about preserving an agricultural tradition that will safeguard farmland for future generations.
ORGANIC spotlights the Hudson Valley as a region at the forefront of this movement. It features the dedicated farmers who are committed to growing and producing food using sustainable methods, and the chefs who echo their beliefs and pay homage to the food they produce.
The portraits of the farmers and chefs were photographed using the wet plate collodion process, a technique developed in the mid-19th century. The 17,000-mile journey through the Hudson Valley includes over 100 of its farmers and chefs.
Francesco Mastalia has traveled the world photographing tribal, religious, spiritual, and indigenous people. His book DREADS published by Workman Artisan is a photo documentary on the history of dreadlocks. With travels to Ethiopia, Kenya, Angola, Namibia, Senegal, India, Japan, New Zealand, Jamaica and throughout the United States. DREADS is now in its eighth printing, sold worldwide, and includes an introduction by Pulitzer Prize winning author Alice Walker.