Freedom in the Wilds: An Artist in the Adirondacks, Third Edition

Harold Weston’s captivating account of his intimate relationship with the wilderness, Freedom in the Wilds combines an informal history of the Adirondack Mountain Reserve with his own experiences there as a painter and woodsman. He incorporates stories gathered over many years from the region’s guides and lumbermen and the wealthy visionaries seeking to preserve the wilderness.

First published in 1971, Freedom in the Wilds became a classic among Adirondack literature for its thoughtful exploration of wilderness and creativity. In this third edition, Rebecca Foster updates the original by bringing to the foreground Weston’s compelling personal story. She also adds a rich trove of Weston’s letters and journal entries, along with new illustrations, explanatory notes, and a new introduction that will give Weston’s story greater resonance with contemporary readers.

Harold Weston (1894-1972) spent his childhood summers in the remote Adirondack High Peaks in upstate New York and built a studio-home there in 1920. His deep love and knowledge of the area came from painting its ancient, rugged mountains for most of his adult life. Breaking from solitude periodically, he was an ardent humanitarian devoted to relief work during both World Wars and to the fight for artists’ rights during the Cold War. Freedom in the Wilds, which was first published shortly before his death, is a tribute to the influence the Adirondacks had on his rich legacy of art and activism.

Rebecca Foster is president of the Society for the Preservation of American Modernists and Harold Weston’s granddaughter and biographer. She lives in Brooklyn, New York.