An obituary of Benjamin Raino, master wood carver and raconteur
Folk Art
Fr. Saba Shofany and the Faithway of Iconography
The training and technicques of Byzantine iconographer, Fr. Abouna Saba Shofany are described.
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 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.
Artist Spotlight
A portrait of Jianling Yue, Chinese papercutting artist and Professor of Communication at Rensselaer Polytechni institution (RPI).
A Reading Life
A review of “Threads of Life: A History of the World Through the Eye of a Needle,” by Clare Hunter.
From the Waterfront
Portraits of Long Island decoy carvers and hunters.
ALN8BAL8MO: A Native Voice
A biographical essay of Seneca artist, Jesse Cornplanter.
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.”