6 Best Sights in Woodstock, The Catskills

Promoting the work of local artists since 1916, this cultural center has several different gallery spaces that host concurrent exhibits. The Main Gallery has monthly group exhibits, while the Phoebe and Belmont Towbin Wing is devoted to art from the permanent collection. There's also a gallery devoted to works by young artists. You can't miss the charming building, with its entrance set off by tall red shutters.

Ralph Radcliffe Whitehead, a wealthy Englishman under the sway of William Morris and John Ruskin, decided to create a utopian arts colony. His friend and conspirator Bolton Brown, an artist, suggested Woodstock. After a visit in 1902, Whitehead agreed. Here is the result: 250 acres holding the only intact arts and crafts colony in the U.S. Whitehead's efforts laid the groundwork for Woodstock's transformation into a colony of the arts. Artists, writers, composers, and dance and theater companies still call it home when they participate in its residency programs. There are plenty of events, from concerts to lectures to opportunities to visit artists at work in their studios. Guided tours are offered in the summer.

You're entering hallowed ground, because this building was once the Espresso Café, where Bob Dylan, Janis Joplin, Joan Baez, and others entertained countercultural dreamers. Now a gallery space for photography, the center aims to provoke serious consideration of the medium, offering a dynamic series of exhibits, lectures, and workshops.

Meander through the terraced sculpture garden, past the babbling brook, several inspired birdhouses, and other delightful art objects to the studio of Elena Zang and Alan Hoffman, creators of minimalist functional pottery. Down the hill is the gallery space, where blond-wood floors and an infusion of light set off the contemporary art on the walls.

A giant golden Buddha resides in the colorful shrine room of this Tibetan Buddhist monastery, where you can meditate or wander the grounds. Stroll around to discover a fishpond, guesthouse, and solitary-retreat cabins, or join a guided tour on weekends at 1:30. Because this is a religious center, you're not permitted into the main shrine room wearing shoes, hats, or revealing garments. Introductory instruction in shinay (mind-calming) meditation is also available. The monastery is about 3 miles north of the village center.

Dead artists of all kinds reside here: poets, musicians, writers, painters, sculptors, dancers, and bon vivants. Many of the stones, in keeping with the wishes of their buried subjects, tell artfully rendered stories. Look for the grassy knoll behind the Evergreen Cemetery to commune with the spirits of Woodstock.