Sights & SoundsReal Folk: Passing on Trades and Traditions of the Virginia Folklife Apprenticeship Program
Watch the 5-episode virtual tour: Since 2002, the Virginia Folklife Apprenticeship Program at Virginia Humanities has brought together more than 150 experienced master artists and eager apprentices, ensuring various art …
Sights & SoundsThe Old Jimmy Sutton
A masterful songster recorded by two folklorists, fifty years apart. When the late folklorist Alan Lomax set out on his now infamous “Southern Journey” in 1959, he stopped in Chilhowie, …
Sights & SoundsMaster Artist Spotlight: Mark Cline
Mark Cline is a master artist in the 2019-2020 class of apprenticeship teams in the art of roadside attractions and fiberglass sculpture. In this feature Richmond-writer Don Harrison takes an …
Sights & SoundsThe Sweetness of Virginia’s “Little Switzerland”
Maple Syrup in Highland County Highland County, Virginia may be one of the least populated counties East of the Mississippi, but its heart is big, the mountain views are …
Sights & SoundsMongolian Contortion: The Art of Bending
Many of the traditions on display at the Virginia Folklife Apprenticeship Showcase date back centuries in Virginia, but others are deeply established art forms that are new to this country, …
Sights & SoundsPassing on Quechua culture in Virginia
By Violeta Palchik As I chat with Julia Garcia, or Mama Julia as she is known, she lays out the intricate web making up the spiritual culture of indigenous Bolivian …
Sights & SoundsBaklava as Art
By Theresa Kubasak “I love making baklava… It’s art!” Sondus Moussa sets up her wooden board, positions a warm pan of clarified butter and sniffs a mixture of ground nuts, …
Sights & SoundsCambodian New Year 2017
Amidst boys wearing gold bandoliers chasing each other through the lower level of the Big Temple, Sochietah Ung is the eye of the storm. His hands move quickly with gold thread to put the finishing touches on a dancer’s gold and indigo costume. Satisfied with his work on the dancer’s skirt, he lifts the small girl onto a chair to affix gold jewelry around her waist and ankles.
Sights & SoundsMemories of Hanukkah: Flory Jagoda’s “Ocho Kandelikas”
As the holidays enter full swing, Christmas songs—ranging from the insipid to the sublime—become a seemingly ubiquitous presence in our lives. Largely buried in a sonic avalanche of sleigh bells, …
Sights & SoundsMaking Barbacoa with Luz Lopez
By Violeta Palchik In the town of Morocoy, where Luz Lopez was raised, there is a large plaza where people go to relax at the end of the day. Several …
Sights & SoundsApprenticeship Spotlight: Sherman Holmes and Whitney Nelson
By Jon Lohman, Virginia State Folklorist One of my fondest memories of the 2014 Folklife Apprenticeship Showcase was the sight of members of participating master artists the Holmes Brothers sitting …
Sights & SoundsMagnificent: The Charlie McClendon Story
We have created an online exhibit that includes recent and archival video, audio, and still photography, and extensive interviews with Charlie McClendon, Richard Levin, and others. It also includes an edited film, “Put Me Down Easy: The Charlie McClendon Story.”
