Special Announcement

In April 2009, the Fund for Folk Culture (FFC), closed its Austin, Texas office and suspended its current programs. The Board of Trustees is now exploring future organizational models and alliances for the FFC. We will post periodic updates on the website about these activities and other projects as plans develop.

In the interim, Betsy Peterson is serving as consultant for the organization, which continues to operate in a minimal capacity. The FFC is currently working with the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress on a documentation initiative focused on occupational lore and will be working with the American Folklore Society on strategic planning for the field.

For information on the Fund for Folk Culture, contact Betsy Peterson at bpeterson@folkculture.org or 512-914-0951 or Tim Lloyd, Chairman, FFC Board of Trustees at lloyd.100@osu.edu.

Artist Focus on Mark Newberry

Tennessee traditional chairmaker Mark Newberry received a grant from the FFC's Artists Support Program in Round Three to help defray the costs of a new workshop. Read an article from the Fall 2008 issue of Tennessee Arts, a publication of the Tennessee Arts Commission, about the Newberry family's craft. >>

 Photo courtesy of Dean Dixon

FFC Working Paper by Maribel Alvarez

After a hiatus, we re-activated our Working Paper series with an article by Dr. Maribel Alvarez, folklorist at the Southwest Center at the University of Arizona. The paper Strike a Global Pose: Considerations for Working with Folk and Traditional Cultures in the 21st Century (Downloadable PDF Document 159KB. To view download the Free Adobe Reader.) was the third in our series and was commissioned as part of the FFC’s Changing Demographics Initiative (CDI) underwritten by the Ford Foundation. The paper examines 21st century challenges and strategies facing traditional artists and communities and suggests new ways of working.