A collaboration between youth in a refugee camp in Malawi, U.S. college students, and a professor of folklore has produced a website and forthcoming book manuscript. The project augments opportunities for the artists, all of whom are refugees or asylum seekers, to share their work, bring visibility to the talent in the camp, raise awareness about…

The author introduces Hong Kong-based paper-tearing artist Sing Man Lee. Lee's paper-tearing art offers a lens for learning about traditional Chinese cultures as well as contemporary life in China. This instructional resource can serve as part of a multicultural art education curriculum, enriching students' art experiences by connecting their…

The importance of storytelling in African American quilt heritage is critical to understanding the context in which these objects were and are created and the meaning this art has for the maker, their communities, and wider audiences. Quilts made by African American artists have been overlooked and misinterpreted by those who do not have access to…

In the vast repository of research on family involvement in schools, researchers agree that both students and schools do better when families are involved (Epstein et al., 2009; Lareau, 2011; Mapp, 2002). There is little research, however, on parent involvement in the arts. Notwithstanding the lack of published data, programs offer funding and…

In the Metropolitan Museum of Modern Art in New York City there is a woodcarving called a "Yipwon". It is from the remote north-east region of Papua New Guinea and was created by the Yiman people of the Korewori River Region. The Yipwon carvings look like a human skeleton in profile, showing evidence of ribs, heart, and head. The Yipwon…

Empowering Women is a traveling exhibition of folk art that focuses on ten cooperatives from four continents and ten countries. The exhibition is a window into the ways that cooperatives empower women to: (1) preserve and reinvigorate their country's traditional arts; (2) generate steady livelihoods for their families; (3) send their children to…

Everyone likes a good story and different cultures have their unique ways of telling stories. Japan has a history of picture folktales called "kamishibai." Kamishibai (kah-mee-shee-bye), or "paper theater," began to appear on the streets of Japan in the 1920s. A kamishibai performer would ride a bicycle from town to town with…

Russia is a very large country, spanning across the two continents of Asia and Europe. It has a rich folk-art tradition. In old Russia, among peasants, "Matryona" or "Matriosha" was a very popular female name. The Latin root "mater" means "mother." This name was associated with the image of a large,…

The small, isolated community of Gee's Bend, Alabama, is home to a rich quilting heritage. The quilters have enjoyed much recent fame. There have been traveling exhibitions, large coffee-table books, and even a series of postage stamps. The quilts are striking; they feature bold, asymmetrical patterns, bright colors, and rich texture. Examining…

Many different cultures created and used the basket not only for utilitarian purposes, but also for ceremonial uses. In this article, the author describes an eighth-grade project inspired by the basket making of the Gullah people, who live along the coast of South Carolina, Georgia and Florida.

In this article, the author describes a papier-mache unit inspired by whimsical animal sculptures created by artisans from the Oaxaca (pronounced Wah-Haw-Ka) region in southern Mexico. While the actual Mexican sculptures are carved from wood, the papier-mache medium is easier to work with and requires fewer tools. Most middle schoolers love…

Mexican printer Jose Guadalupe Posada's (1851-1913) numerous prints of "calaveras" gave vast popularity to skeleton figures through his satirical and politically critical renditions of skeletons engaged in daily activities. They are oftentimes represented in festive and playful posturing. Calaveras have now become the most original trait…

This article describes an exhibit entitled "Critter Folk" for the Betty Foy Sanders department of art at Georgia Southern University. The theme of the exhibit is folk art "critters"--crocodiles, chickens, cows, snakes, elephants, cats--from the Smith Callaway Banks Southern Folk Art Collection. The organizers invited two…

Can art be powerful enough as medium to connect two economically and culturally diverse groups of students totally unfamiliar with each other? The author put this question to the test by introducing a lesson on Madhubani, a traditional folk art from a remote region in India. The author describes how this activity gives students an opportunity to…

Anna Mary Robertson Moses, popularly known as Grandma Moses, may be the most famous American folk artist. A fortuitous combination of original vision, innate talent, spunky character, and long life, Moses is known for her landscapes that depict nostalgic views of country life. In this article, the author describes an art activity she introduced to…