Two small doors have appeared on the grounds of the Poughkeepsie Farm Project (PFP), and visitors are invited to find them. Called “DIRTdoors,” they are the newest installation from The DIRT Project, an artist-led initiative by Emilie Houssart, Adjunct Lecturer in the Art Department at SUNY New Paltz. They were installed at the farm for Harvest Fest on October 3.

The “DIRTdoors” invite visitors of all ages to play with earth, language and identity, and to think about the invisible life underfoot and inside the body.

The only clue offered to visitors: both doors are near a place that smells really good.

The DIRT Project offers experiential, collaborative workshops and interactive installations for all ages. Its work invites play with earth, linguistics and identity, and explores our relationships with the invisible life forms inside the body and underfoot.

The project began as a slow art project at PFP last year. Since then it has grown through wandering and sensing the land, working alongside farmers and volunteers, talking with community members, hosting interns and visiting artists for conversation around soil, and mentoring a student teacher through a public workshop that connects art with food, community and culture.

“Education gardens are created to be playful and to spark curiosity. Why is this growing here? How does it work? Can I eat it? Smell it? We want someone to meet a worm for the very first time, or lift a hidden door in the ground and discover how alive the soil beneath us really is. These are moments worth sharing, the kind that make you want to bring a friend and show them what you found. In the garden, we're never really alone. It's the ultimate connecting space.”
—Amanda Henson, Co-Director, Educational Programs, Poughkeepsie Farm Project

The “DIRTdoors” sit alongside the rest of PFP’s programming at the farm, including workshops and weekly volunteering in support of its educational and food access efforts.

About The DIRT Project

The DIRT Project is a collaborative art practice led by Emilie Houssart, Adjunct Lecturer in the Art Department at SUNY New Paltz and the SUNY Sustainability Faculty Fellow program. Learn more at emiliehoussart.com.

About Poughkeepsie Farm Project

Poughkeepsie Farm Project is a 12-acre, nonprofit, regenerative CSA farm at 51 Vassar Farm Lane in Poughkeepsie, New York, on land leased from Vassar College. Founded in 1999 and Certified Naturally Grown, PFP grows more than 160,000 pounds of produce each year and serves 500+ CSA households. It donates over a quarter of what it grows, 44,197 pounds in 2025, to Hudson Valley neighbors facing food insecurity. Learn more at farmproject.org.

This event is free and open to the public.