A kaleidoscope of colors awaits at Mount Tremper

By Michelle Vellucci
Poughkeepsie Journal

MOUNT TREMPER — We all peered through them when were children, those cardboard tubes with the colorful beads that clicked together as they spun around and around, forming fantastic, swirling patterns on the other side of the peephole.

The kaleidoscope, which comes from three Greek words meaning “beautiful form to see,” has been delighting children and adults alike since 1816, when a Scottish physicist named Sir David Brewster invented it. The contraption was very popular in Europe and the United States in the 1800s and in recent years has made a comeback among artists and collectors.

Until a few years ago, the largest kaleidoscope in the world was 12 feet long. Then, a showman named Dean Gitter came around and smashed that world record to smithereens.

Nowadays, the World’s Largest Kaleidoscope is an impressive 65 feet tall. And it’s right here in our own backyard.

You can find the Kaatskill Kaleidoscope on Route 28 in Mount Tremper, just a stone’s throw from Woodstock. The kaleidoscope resides in a place called Catskill Corners, a quaint collection of shops and restaurants situated in a converted barn built in 1841.

Nestled at the foot of the Catskill Mountains, Catskill Corners is home to shops such as Wild Things, a toy store with everything from plush animals and puppets to games and puzzles; Enchantments, a shop that sells furniture, accessories and gifts in a style described as rural chic; and Scentsations, a store stocked with fragrances in every form, from essential oils to Yankee Candles.

Hungry? Then stop by The Spotted Dog, a family restaurant reminiscent of a Victorian firehouse, where diners sit in booths made from real fire engines. The Catamount Cafe offers fine dining and dancing, and Catskills a la Cart features an old-time soda and ice cream fountain, as well as a lunch menu and baked goods.

And then there are the kaleidoscopes.

There is, of course, the World’s Largest (if you doubt it, check the Guinness Book of World Records). There’s also the World’s Second Largest — otherwise known as the Amazing Dondoakahedron — which is a giant, 20-sided star that reflects images from space.

New use for silo

The World’s Largest is housed in a silo once used to store grain and animal feed. Because the silo was part of the original barn, Gitter wanted to make use of it, but it took him a while to figure out just what he would use it for.

‘‘I was searching for something other than just retail to bring people to the area,’’ Gitter said. ‘‘And the architect kept saying, ‘What are we going to do with the silo?’ So one day I said, ‘I don’t know, maybe we’ll make it into the world’s largest kaleidoscope.’

‘‘I didn’t know anything about kaleidoscopes,’’ he said. ‘‘I hadn’t looked at one since the one I had from Woolworth’s when I was a child.’’

Ten days later, kaleidoscope artist Charles Karadimos began working on a 37.5-foot-tall pyramid of mirrors for the record-breaking ’scope.

Here’s how it works: Video images are projected onto a screen that stretches over the opening of Karadimos’ mirror pyramid. Unlike its smaller cousins, this kaleidoscope relies on technology rather than beads and colored oils to provide its pretty images.

A giant virtual sphere rotates on the screen and the reflections of the rotating images create the kaleidoscopic effect.

To view this phenomenon, you step into a darkened room where there are not seats but rather cushioned rests for you to lean on with your back and neck. That’s because you’re going to spend the next 10 minutes or so looking directly up into the kaleidoscope, where the images appear to float in space.

There are two different ‘‘shows’’ that alternate seasonally. Playing now is something called ‘‘America, the House We Live In,’’ which is a kaleidoscopic tale of the history of the Catskills region, from the beginning of time to Woodstock ’69. The other show, ‘‘Metamorphosis,’’ depicts the changing of the seasons.

While the World’s Largest sets a new record for size, the Amazing Dondoakahedron sets a precedent for shape. It’s named for kaleidoscope artist Don Doaks, who created a 20-sided (dodecahedron) mirrored star that reflects images from the Hubble Telescope provided by NASA.

Before you view this show, you’re greeted by Professor von Kaleido, an animated fellow with a shock of white hair and a white lab coat. The show itself is beautiful, with heavenly images of the stars and planets morphing and melting before your eyes.

So now you’ve seen the two largest kaleidoscopes in the world. What’s left? More kaleidoscopes.

By the end of your day at Catskill Corners, your eyes might be tired from squinting through peepholes, but you definitely won’t run out of things to see.

Treasures for any budget

In the KaleidoStore, you’ll find kaleidoscopes ranging from $2.95 to $5,900. There are the cardboard ones you remember from your childhood and there are fancier ones made from stained glass, wood and metal.

You’ll find a replica of a stained glass kaleidoscope called ‘‘Evergreen,’’ which was created for former President George Bush with a design reminiscent of his home in Kennebunkport, Maine. You can even view one of the first kaleidoscopes made in this country.

‘‘It’s an ever-expanding art form,’’ said Linda Prinzivalli, who works in the KaleidoStore. ‘‘People are gravitating toward it because it’s interactive art.’’

Customers are welcome to try out most of the kaleidoscopes in the store, but if you’ve got kids with you, the best place to go is Tom’s Crystal Palace. This indoor playground is a haven for children who really want a hands-on experience.

Painted with neon colors and lit with black lights, the room features 16 kaleidoscopes that kids (and adults) can play with and climb on. One invites you to view a friend through the other end of a teleidoscope (unlike a kaleidoscope, this has a lens through which you can view your surroundings).

Newburgh resident Deanne Alfano and her 4-year-old son, Nicholas, got a kick out of that one.

‘‘Oh, my goodness — look at all those eyes!’’ Alfano exclaimed as she looked through the peephole at her son.

It was the Alfanos’ first visit to Kaleidoworld.

‘‘It was really cool,’’ Deanne Alfano said of the World’s Largest. ‘‘Just the music and the way they put it all together was great. (Nicholas) was lying on the floor. It’s much easier for the little ones to see from there.’’

When asked to choose his favorite kaleidoscope, Nicholas scratched his head. But in the end, there’s really no competition.

‘‘The big kaleidoscope with lots of music,’’ he said. ‘‘It was fun.’’