LOCALadk Magazine
Issue link: https://localadkmagazine.uberflip.com/i/995162
34 Summer 2018 LOCALadk Magazine LOCALadk A Q& A between the author and Peter Hornbeck Q: What does the phrase 'Forever Wild' mean to you? A: Article 14 of the New York State Constitution is known as the 'Forever Wild' clause. This has a lot of meaning for me personally. Article 14 requires that public land in the Adiron- dack Forest Preser ve be kept in a wild, undeveloped state. My wife, Ann, and I moved here and have happily lived here for the last 47 years because of this protection. This protec- tion has also led to the success of Hornbeck Boats as a busi- ness because of the ever-increasing opportunities for paddle sports in a wild setting in proximity to much of the popula- tion of the Eastern United States. As a business we couldn't exit without places both like the Bog River Flow and like New York City. Q: Does your business support this philosophy? A: I would say that our business exists because of the 'For- ever Wild' philosophy. Protected wild land is what makes the area unique. It is what we have to offer the public. Too often business and political interests have viewed the inclusion of land in the forest preser ve as the 'kiss of death' for the econ- omy. This just isn't true. An argument can be made that pro- tected land is the basis of the economy in the Adirondacks. People vacation here, retire here, and spend their money here because of the wildness. Q: As a watercolor artist that draws inspiration from the Adirondack wilderness, do you have a location in the park you would like to explore in more detail? A: I have lived here most of my adult life and there are still many places, particularly in the northern and western Ad- irondacks, that I have never visited. However, I can also find new subject matter within a few hundred feet of where this is being written. Q: Have you ever considered other mediums than water- color? A: I enjoy designing and building boats – for me it's sculp- ture. I start with thin strips of wood and attach them to ply- wood forms the shape of which I develop by eye. Like with a watercolor, I start with a general idea and as I proceed something new and never seen or paddled before happens. Successful watercolors go in frames and are hung on walls. Successful boat designs become boats headed for the water. It's all art to me.