Ithaca's Johnson Museum hosts student-led staffage exhibit
The Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art in Ithaca is hosting a new student-led installation focused on small figures in landscape paintings. The exhibit explores how tiny figures, known as “staffage,” indicate scale and tell larger stories about the art.
In the tradition of European landscape painting, staffage figures “give the painting a sense of depth, but also a possibility of narrative, some kind of literary component,” said Benjamin Anderson, associate professor in the Department of History of Art and Visual Studies in the Cornell University College of Arts and Sciences, who taught a fall 2025 Society for the Humanities seminar that inspired the installation.
“The general idea was that the entire painting was executed and then the staffage was added,” Anderson said. “In fact, some painters didn’t do their own staffage.”
More at https://news.cornell.edu/stories/2026/02/museum-installation-focuses-small-figures-large-landscapes. Cornell University is at Johnson Museum of Art.
| Feb 11, 2026 at 8:30 AM | College |
Ithaca street cleaning begins March 30
The city of Ithaca says street cleaning begins Monday, March 30, and residents should sign up for TC SIREN notifications and verify their addresses; more information and the Week One schedule are on the city’s website.
| Mar 27, 2026 at 2:57 PM | Gov |
Teens' sense of purpose fluctuates daily, Cornell study finds
Cornell researchers say teenagers’ sense of purpose fluctuates day to day, is not a fixed trait, and those who experience it steadily may benefit most, with parents and mentors urged to monitor variability to reduce large swings that could signal vulnerability.
| Mar 27, 2026 at 8:30 AM | College |
Cornell welcomes incoming class #Cornell2030
Cornell University in Ithaca welcomed its incoming class, labeled #Cornell2030, in a post offering a warm welcome and saying it can't wait to meet the new Cornellians.
| Mar 26, 2026 at 7:16 PM | College |
Cornell hosts largest stem cell registry drive on campus
ITHACA, N.Y. — Cornell hosted Big Red, Big Impact, a weeklong campaign inviting students, faculty and staff ages 18 to 35 to join the national stem cell registry through a 30-second cheek swab, with nine swabbing stations across campus in the largest event of its kind ever hosted by the NMDP, inspired by a donor search for a 15-year-old boy, and a follow-up event is planned for late April with online swabbing kits available for those outside Ithaca.
| Mar 24, 2026 at 3:32 PM | College |
Cornell Sees First Day of Spring, Blossoms Return
ITHACA, N.Y. — Cornell University says today marks the first day of spring and it looks forward to the return of its famous blossoms.
| Mar 20, 2026 at 8:30 AM | College |
Ithaca spring street cleaning begins March 30
The Ithaca Department of Public Works will begin its annual Spring Street Cleaning on March 30 and run through April 24, 2026, with schedule details and alert sign-ups available on the city’s website and through TC SIREN.
| Mar 19, 2026 at 3:30 PM | Gov |
Milkweed upgrades toxins to outmaneuver monarchs
Cornell University researchers in Ithaca, N.Y., say milkweed has upgraded its toxins to better counter monarch butterfly defenses.
| Mar 19, 2026 at 12:54 PM | College |
Cornell Veterinary College Hosts Annual Open House in Ithaca
Cornell University’s College of Veterinary Medicine in Ithaca will host its annual CVM Open House on April 11 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., offering a behind-the-scenes look with hands-on activities, live demonstrations, guided tours and interactive exhibits as visitors meet faculty, staff and students and learn how veterinarians care for animals from household pets to wildlife and farm animals.
| Mar 18, 2026 at 8:30 AM | College |
Rep. Riley Introduces NSF Plant Biology Act for Food Systems
Rep. Josh Riley has introduced the NSF Plant Biology Act to fund plant and microbial biology research at Cornell's CALS to strengthen food systems for agriculture producers.
| Mar 17, 2026 at 4:47 PM | College |
GIAC Registered for Ithaca's 10th Give a Chance Lottery
GIAC has been registered for Ithaca’s 10th annual Give a Chance Lottery and is urging supporters to vote daily from March 1 through March 31, as the Solomon Organization hosts the 11th annual Give a Chance Charitable Event with top prizes of $5,000, $2,000 and $1,000 and a Feb. 28 deadline for 501(c)(3) charities in the Ithaca area to enter.
| Mar 17, 2026 at 2:09 PM | Gov |