CANAJOHARIE, NY.- The Arkell Museum at Canajoharie opened two summer exhibitions, Mingling the Waters: 200 Years on the Erie Canal and'Truth is the Only Safe Ground to Stand Upon': Portraits of New York State Suffragists by Christine Heller on Saturday, June 24. Both exhibitions celebrate two significant New York anniversaries: the 200th Anniversary of groundbreaking for the Erie Canal, and the 100th Anniversary of New York State Women's Suffrage. These exhibitions will be on display through Sunday, September 3, 2017.

Mingling the Waters: 200 Years on the Erie Canal features artwork and artifacts from the Arkell Museum's permanent collection. Scenes depicting life on and along the Canal from its construction through the early 20th Century are included, as well as many views of Canajoharie and the surrounding area.

'Truth is the Only Safe Ground to Stand Upon' features portraits of New York State suffragists by the artist Christine Heller, created in celebration of the Centennial Anniversary of New York State women achieving the Right to Vote. Visitors will recognize prominent suffragists such as Susan B. Anthony, who taught school in Canajoharie, and Underground Railroad Conductor Harriet Tubman. Portraits of additional Suffragists include Matilda Joselyn Gage, who advocated for the Mohawk and received voting rights in their council, and Harriet May Mills, who ran for secretary of state in 1920, the first year she was able to vote in a federal election.

Christine Heller's artwork reflects her concern for human suffering and social inequality. As a committed feminist, Heller was inspired by the 2016 presidential campaign to create this series of suffragist portraits in order to honor the women who fought so valiantly for women's rights. Inspired by an early interest in dance, Heller's murals, installations, and paintings often focus on the human figure and its placement within space and society. Since 2012, Heller has been a scholar-in-residence at Roanoke College, in Salem, West Virginia. Closer to home, she has completed important murals for the Munson-Williams-Proctor Art Institute in Utica and the State University of New York at Oneonta.

Bartlett Arkell, the founder and first president of the Beech-Nut Packing Company, created the original Art Gallery for the residents of Canajoharie in 1927. The American painting collection now includes seven oil paintings by Winslow Homer, all currently on display, and significant paintings by many distinguished artists including Thomas Benton, William M. Chase, Childe Hassam, John Singer Sargent, Albert Bierstadt, and Gilbert Stuart. Permanent and changing exhibitions also feature selections from the museum's Mohawk Valley History collection as well as the Beech-Nut archives of early twentieth-century advertising material.