“We are about life and the human aspects behind the creations, the living spaces and the landscape.” And despite the geographic specificity of its title, Orne says she intends to expand her scope to explore the lives of creators in other rural areas of the world. “I see this not as a regional publication, but more as a frame of mind,” she explains. “We are really discovering and defining a cultural community which is beyond the metropolitan areas.” - Kate Orne, New York Times

Upstate Diary was founded by Kate Orne, a former fashion and editorial photographer, first moved from Manhattan to the Hudson Valley in 2009, she sometimes found herself feeling isolated, and began seeking out conversation with other creatives in the area. From this informal, back-roads networking eventually emerged an online journal documenting the lives (and gorgeous cabins, farms and studios) of the painters, writers and designers who have made the region beyond New York City their home.