Over the years, I have met some amazing photographers and artists who, like myself, are captivated with the South Shore bay houses of Long Island. One of those people was artist Dan Pollera, who passed away in March 2022….Another artist who we admire is Kathy Herzy of West Islip, who has painted numerous scenes of traditional maritime activities, including clamming, birdwatching, waterfowl scenes, and traditional boats and fish houses.
Folk Art
Portrait of an Artist: Ellen Fjermedal
It was in my fingers!” Ellen Fjermedal explained. Ellen, a demure, but determined and spry elder, started drawing when she was a child in Arendal, on the south coast of Norway. Now living in Victor, New York, she has a studio and display area at home where she paints rosemaling (Norwegian) or kurbits (Swedish) decorations.
May Baskets
Come springtime, generations of children in the greater Glens Falls area spent weeks making May Baskets to distribute to friends and neighbors on the first of May….The custom traveled to America, noted in the late 19th century by Lina and Adelia Beard in their 1887 book, The American Girls Handy Book: ‘A May-day custom, and a very pretty one, still survives among the children in our New England States. It is that of hanging upon the door-knobs of friends and neighbors pretty spring-offerings in the shapeof small baskets filled with flowers, wild ones, if they can be obtained; if not, the window-gardens at home are heavily taxed to supply the deficiency.’
From the Director
With an expanded and competent staff, New York Folklore
has experienced increased activity within the
greater Capital Region, including the inauguration
of the Mohawk Hudson Folklife Festival in
Albany’s Washington Park. In addition, NYF is
experiencing a resurgence of activity in folk arts
education, much of which involves partnerships…
NYFS News and Notes
NYFS hosts the Folk Arts Roundtable December 2-4, 2014, in Troy. NYFS presents two separate traveling exhibitions: “Farm and Field: The Rural Folk Arts of the Catskill Region” and “Stable Views: Voices and Stories from the Thoroughbred Racetrack.”
Reimagining Irish Lace in Western New York
“(Re-)Making Irish Lace” attempted to understand how a particular art form has been interpreted by different groups of people, locally and abroad, for nearly 200 years, comparing past and recent practice…how the unfurling story of Irish lace is playing out in the daily lives of Buffalonians.
Artist Spotlight
George A. Olsen, Jr., practices the art of wood turning to craft tools, including rolling pins, spatulas, and pepper mills.
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.
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).