Suffern-based photographer Michael Malandra in his Elements Gallery beside his shot of the Bavarian Church Steeple — the image was selected by Torne Valley Vineyards as the label for its new German-style white wine Gewürtztraminer.
Local travel and adventure photographer Michael Malandra said he’s not much of a wine drinker himself, though he’s not averse to a nice beer or good whiskey (whisky for those Scots drinkers). Nevertheless, a photo Malandra took overlooking the quaint Bavarian town of Randersacker, Germany will adorn a German-style white wine from Torne Valley Vineyards.
Torne Valley Vineyards in Torne Valley, Hillburn, NY, is open Saturday and Sundays from 11am to 5:30pm, with light food fair and wine and live entertainment.
The popular kick-back-and-celebrate-life spot that looks out toward Torne Mountain officially introduces its 2013 Gewürtztraminer on Saturday, April 11. Malandra said he planned to attend the event and will give away complimentary prints of the new label’s image to the first 100 customers.
Torne Valley Vineyards will give away complimentary postcard-size shot of the Michael Malandra Church Steeple Sturday to the first 100 customers — the image adorns the Vineyard’s new German-style white wine.
Malandra will also have an assortment of his nature and adventure photography available at the Victorian Gothic house, completely restored by its owners, brothers Jon and Stephen France and business partner David Weber, who manages the place. While wandering the spacious rooms or grounds Saturday, listen for the Americana tunes of Douglas Myer, the spirit behind Mountain Cat Guitars, a boutique builder of custom guitars in Suffern, NY and NYC.
The new Torne Valley white wine was produced from grapes grown in the valley, with the bottle’s label celebrating the wine’s inspiration and ancestors in Bavaria, depicting a shot of the historical town surrounded by vineyards while a soaring church steeple rises over everything. The Church Steeple image can also be found at Malanda’s earthy Elements Gallery located along Lafayette Avenue in Suffern, NY, where it hangs in several iterations, including framed canvas output that is quite painterly in color and texture.
Malandra recalled the early days of Torne Valley Vineyards, which began having weekend music only a few years ago. Stephen France is a jazz enthusiast and player himself. The brothers decided to merge their passions — wine and music. Those first weekends only had a handful of customers, recalled Malandra, who sat out on the deck back in the day, listening to his good friend Myer play while taking in the special valley view. Now weekends at the Vineyard, which is nestled along the Ramapo River just north of the Torne Center in Hillburn, are bustling events that draw people from the across the Hudson Valley.
A shot from Michael Malandra’s series from out Sedona, AZ way.
With its weekends of music and wine and growing wedding reception business, the Vineyard acts as salon of sorts, drawing artists and artisans from around the area to its events like a magnet for those with similar passions to take risks and pursue that certain bliss.
Malandra said he got a call from Jon France, who discussed how the brothers were putting together a new white wine and they thought his Church Steeple would be perfect for the bottle label. The photographer was taken aback and pleased. The image hangs on the wall in the halls of the winery house and has a certain emotional connection as it is the hometown of Malandra’s wife’s mother.
The whole artistic cycle was also completed in a nice way, from original shot to wine bottle, merging the passions of not only Malandra but his friends. Malandra’s learned over the years that for photography to really work, and ultimately sell, it must make an emotional connection with viewers. Church Steeple works in precisely that way, investing the whole winemaking process with friendship and artistic inspiration.
A sampling of Malandra’s works will be also available at Torne Valley Winery Saturday, after 1 p.m., from larger, open-frame format images reproduced on canvas and laminated lustre paper to smaller prints.
The painterly quality of Malandra’s photographic direction harkens back to his original efforts as a painter, before he even picked up a camera. While taking painting lessons years ago, his teacher told him to just go buy a camera to shoot his own images and create his own visions. And the rest of that story is still unfolding. Some of Malandra latest works haven’t yet found their way into frames and come from in and around the Jerome, Arizona ghost town, near Sedona. Shots of assorted abandoned trucks and old timey-time vehicles pop in color from Malandra’s subtle production process, giving a rugged, haunting retro Americana feel. Malandra said he’s still working to figure out what to do with the shots, but they too tug with an emotional undercurrent.
To get a sampling of Malandra’s work and the artistic collaboration taking place in Torne Valley at the Vineyards, drop in Saturday afternoon for the public introduction of the new Gewürtztraminer — of course, there’ll be plenty of other wines on offer for tasting. And music. And a touch of warm weather and peek of springtime that, together, should help put a shine on one of the area’s secret spots, helping to transform the whole of Western Ramapo.
