Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Arts Council, in partnership with the Vermont Folklife Center, presents “New American Artists: Celebrating Tradition and Culture” opening July 10 in the Spotlight Gallery. The exhibit is a tribute to the work of Gregory Sharrow, who established the Vermont Traditional Arts Apprenticeship Program during his 30-year tenure at the Vermont Folklife Center. The program ensures the cultural retention of Vermont’s traditional arts — including those of new Americans — by providing support to master artists working with apprentices in their communities.
Vivid and personal photographs, by Ned Castle, Jeff Woodward, and Kathleen Haughey highlight the work of seven cultural groups participating in or involved with the Vermont Traditional Arts Apprenticeship Program. From a Burundian choral and dance group to a Burmese weaver, each set of photos and accompanying text expresses the artists’ devotion to preserving and sharing these art forms.
“Greg saw the opportunity to embrace the artistic traditions of new Americans through the Apprenticeship Program,” said Vermont Folklife Center Executive Director Kathleen Haughey. “He recognized that by practicing and sharing their cultural expressions, new Americans could sustain their cultures and enrich the creative fabric of Vermont.”
“New American Artists: Celebrating Tradition and Culture” opens Tuesday, July 10. A reception will be held from 5 to 7 p.m. in the Council’s Spotlight Gallery. The exhibit runs through Friday, August 31.
Master Artist Masiti Mohamed continues the tradition of Somalian needlework, called farsama, by teaching young women in her community. Photo by Ned Castle.
About the Spotlight Gallery
The Vermont Arts Council Spotlight Gallery is open to the public and located at 136 State Street in Montpelier. There are times when the conference room is not available, but the corridor exhibit is always open during regular business hours, Monday-Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
About the Vermont Arts Council
The Vermont Arts Council envisions a state where everyone has access to the arts and creativity in their lives, education, and communities. Through its programs and services, the Council strives to increase public awareness of the positive role artists and arts organizations play in communities and to maximize opportunities for everyone to experience the arts. Since 1965, the Council has been the state’s primary provider of funding, advocacy, and information for the arts in Vermont. www.vermontartscouncil.org.
About the Vermont Folklife Center
Founded in 1984, the Vermont Folklife Center (VFC) is a nationally known folklife education organization that uses ethnography — the study of cultural experience through interviewing, participation and observation — to strengthen the understanding of the cultural and social fabric of Vermont's diverse communities. The VFC's mission is to broaden, strengthen, and deepen our understanding of Vermont; to assure a repository for our collective cultural memory; and to strengthen communities by building connections among the diverse peoples of Vermont. www.vermontfolklifecenter.org