Along Bedford Road in Tarrytown, sits the Union Church of Pocantico Hills and it is an amazing Road Trip: Close to Home.

But it’s not just any church - it’s one with marvelous history, thanks to two leading 20th-century artists.  “It houses this extraordinary collection of stainglass windows by Marc Chagall and by Henri Matisse,” says Kateri Scott-MacDonald, of Historic Hudson Valley.

Surrounded by colorful glows— a stroll by the pews is a walk of wonder.  “The windows were donated by the Rockefeller family and several of them are in memory of members of the family,” explains Scott-MacDonald.

When you walk into the church, one of the first things you’ll notice is this crucifixion window. It’s made in memory of 23-year-old Michael Clark Rockefeller, who passed in the 1960s. He was the son of former vice president and New York Gov. Nelson Rockefeller.

And that’s just part of what a single window tells. 

A tour with Historic Hudson Valley will you take through each of these magnificent pieces of work.  “We explain the origins of the church, we explain the artists and how they came to be here… and if you’re interested we can explain to you how the stained glass windows were actually made,” says Scott-MacDonald.

You’ll learn how the process behind each piece is as interesting as it looks.  And if you look close — you can even see Marc Chagall’s fingerprints on Ezekiel’s window. “You have the extraordinary opportunity of getting up very close to great art. You feel yourself enveloped in this in these colors, it has been described sometimes as being inside a jewelry box.”

About 100 years later, the significant stories of spirit, art and legacy live on as the church still stands with an active congregation today.