'Palettes' to decorate Keuka Lake region again

Pictured at right, a typical Keuka Lake 'palette' on dispaly in Hammondsport.

HAMMONDSPORT - The Hammondsport Chamber of Commerce is revving a promotional event that debuted last year and raised thousands of dollars for the Chamber and local artists.

The Palettes of Keuka Lake program will enable area merchants to display paletteshaped paintings by local artists in front of their businesses. A special map of the Hammondsport -Branchport- Penn Yan area will show the location of each palette and will be distributed to tourists visiting Keuka Lake. Tourists may visit the local stores where each palette contains a secret letter. At the conclusion of the tour, the letters enable each visitor to complete a puzzle that goes into a drawing.

The palettes themselves will be auctioned off at the conclusion of the summer season.

Area artists last year painted 36 individual palettes, and the end-of-season auction raised more than $10,000. The funds were split between the participating artists and the Chamber, which used its share to fund community art projects.