Meet HVBH
How might we create art together to help both humans and pollinators thrive?
At Hudson Valley Bee Habitat, we design vibrant pollinator gardens and sculptural bee habitats in collaboration with our community. These living artworks serve as sanctuaries that support pollinators, especially native bees, while offering beautiful, inspiring spaces for people to learn, gather, and reconnect with the natural world.
We utilize permaculture design principles to create thriving landscapes where art, education, and ecology coalesce to inspire environmental stewardship. Our sustainably made, sculptural bee habitats provide essential nesting spaces for solitary native bees, playing a vital role in sustaining local ecosystems.
As experienced educators, we offer arts-based, hands-on workshops for all ages and experience levels, inviting everyone to discover, create, and take meaningful action for pollinators.
Explore our art and current projects, learn more about pollinators, and find out how you can get involved.
Let’s grow together!
Meet HVBH
HVBH Co-Director:
Emily Puthoff
Emily’s journey into pollinator conservation began when she accidentally fell in love with honeybees. Beekeeping reconnected her with the beauty and wonder of the natural world. Since then, Emily has dedicated her creativity to the preservation of pollinators, leveraging her skills as an artist and educator to co-design and create pollinator gardens and public bee habitat sculptures with the community.
Passionate about fostering a more just, wild, and regenerative future, Emily is committed to nurturing beauty, sustenance, and care in both the local community and the broader ecosystem through community engaged art and conservation efforts at Hudson Valley Bee Habitat. She is also a Professor of Art, Sculpture at SUNY New Paltz and certified Permaculture Designer.
HVBH Co-Director:
Elena Sniezek
Elena is an artist, educator, and bee enthusiast. She has over twenty years experience as a teaching artist (Pre-K to College) in Chicago, Arizona, and New York. As a resident of Kingston, Elena is excited to collaborate with youth, educators, and community members with projects involving art, environmental education, and pollinators. Elena is also a Career Advisor at Bard College.
