The Saratoga Yaddo

I recently had the unbelievable pleasure of photographing several rooms from the Yaddo Mansion in Saratoga Springs. I received a call from the editor of a local magazine asking if I'd be interested in shooting inside the very private mansion.

The photos were needed for an up coming publication written on an enormous Tiffany window that resides between floors within the mansion. The window is truly a sight to see in person, photos don't do it justice.

We were greeted by a Yaddo rep, Leslie, and taken to the main mansion, were Leslie told us the sad story and history of the Yaddo, and the Trask family. It's a history filled with fatal fires, deadly ailments, and even a few ghost stories.

The Yaddo is now home to visiting artists, writers, composers, and even movie producers. They excepts thousands of applications from artists and writers from all over the world. Each year around 200 applicants are hand selected and given the opportunity to live and work from within this historic mansion.

You can read more on the history of this incredible place at the Yaddos official website: http://www.yaddo.org/

The view from the public part of the estate, looking up at the rear of the mansion. The top most peak of this house as seen here is called the Katrina Studio (named after it's former resident Katrina Trask).


A view of the Tiffany window that I was there to photograph.


A detail view of the Tiffany window.


Upstairs looking down.


I first thought this was a Chapel of some kind, but actually it's a music hall of sorts. As you can see there's an enormous grand piano set at the front of this room (full in tuned no doubt). I asked Leslie if it was actively used by visiting artists. She said often guest composers would come down and play, it would help then when writing new music and large compositions. I'd give anything to be a fly on the wall in this room when a world class composer is at the helm of this piano...