George A. Olsen, Jr., practices the art of wood turning to craft tools, including rolling pins, spatulas, and pepper mills.
Folk Art
Drawing the Line
Throughout history humans have responded
to a profound need to translate the experience of life into marks, signs, and
symbols onto an infinitely varied number
surfaces, using an equally varied number
of tools and materials, ranging from compressed
charcoal on a cave wall to a rod
of gold on specially coated parchment.
The medium of drawing has chronicled
the history of humankind—a rich and varied tapestry comprised of countless
interwoven threads, each one bearing the
mark of an individual in relation to a series
of larger wholes. For the novice, the
act of drawing can prove irresistible: give
someone a pencil and a sheet of blank paper,
and they will likely leave their “mark.”
For the accomplished draftsman, drawing provides the satisfying experience not only
of exercising a well-honed skill, but also of
giving eloquent form to a vision.
Artist Spotlight: Noah Khoury
Noah Khoury is a second generation blacksmith, as his father was a blacksmith and a welder. In his teenage years, he worked alongside his father, teaching middle-school aged youth at a summer workshop program in Altamont, NY called the Helderberg Workshops. After...
Fr. Saba Shofany and the Faithway of Iconography
The training and technicques of Byzantine iconographer, Fr. Abouna Saba Shofany are described.
Obituary: Ben Raino
An obituary of Benjamin Raino, master wood carver and raconteur
Obituary: Enikö Farkas
An obituary of Hungarian embroiderer and textile historian, Eniko Farkas.
Artist Spotlight
A portrait of Jianling Yue, Chinese papercutting artist and Professor of Communication at Rensselaer Polytechni institution (RPI).
A Grove of Folk Art on Staten Island: Documenting the Carvings of W. Dixon
The author introduces the concenpt of dendroglyphs and the 1930’s work of W.Dixon who carved on five separate beech trees on Staten Island, NY. Dendroglyphs, or tree carvings, are an ephemeral art form that has been documented to be practiced by Haudenosaunee tribes in the 17th century and by Europeans arriving in North America.
Polish Papercutting: Can a 19th-Century Folk Art Be Re-envisioned for the 21st Century?
Polish Papercutting, or Wycinanki, is a traditional folk art. Each wycinanka is hand-crafted, expressing the folk artist’s creativity as well as traditional and regional characteristics. Participation in the art form helps nourish a sense of identity. The author discusses the importance of teaching folk and traditional art within k-12 educational settings.
A Reading Life
A review of “Threads of Life: A History of the World Through the Eye of a Needle,” by Clare Hunter.
ALN8BAL8MO: A Native Voice
A biographical essay of Seneca artist, Jesse Cornplanter.
From the Waterfront
Portraits of Long Island decoy carvers and hunters.
Downstate
Mosaic folk art and individual healing within a city context.
A Report from an Embroiderers’ Gathering
This is a report from a Mid-Atlantic Arts Foundation grant funded project that was a collaboration between textile artists and folklorists in New York and Pennsylvania.
“Remember Me”: the Sources of American Sampler Verses
Fratto examines the origins and use of verses stiched by young girls on American “samplers.”