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For Immediate Release
February 15, 2007
Media Contact
- Allison Tratner
- 609.292.4524
- allison@arts.sos.state.nj.us
State Arts Council Offers Apprenticeships Grants for Traditional Folk Arts
Applications and Guidelines Now Available
(Trenton, NJ) The New Jersey State Council on the Arts (NJSCA) is now distributing Guidelines and Applications for its 2007-2008 Folk Arts Apprenticeship Program. Six technical assistance workshops to assist applicants have been scheduled for locations throughout the state beginning February 17.
NJSCA Chair Carol Herbert explains, “The Council has long recognized that cultural diversity is one of New Jersey’s most significant and valuable characteristics. New Jersey is filled with a wide variety of communities defined by locality, work, ethnicity, belief and culture whose traditional arts are valued ways of expressing identity, strengthening group ties and enriching the larger community around us. Support for these traditional arts preserves important cultural traditions, nurtures artists and celebrates what it means to live in New Jersey.”
Folk Arts Apprenticeships support the traditional arts and crafts of New Jersey’s many different cultural communities, helping talented apprentice artists further hone their skills by working directly with a master artist of a shared community. According to NJSCA Executive Director David Miller, “These awards help break down the barriers that might otherwise impede or prevent the preservation and continuation of important traditions by offsetting the cost of working with master artists. The masters help the apprentice artists develop their skills in the traditional arts and crafts so they may be practiced and passed on to future generations.” Apprentices may request up to $3,000 to support an intensive, year-long regimen of study with a master artist. The deadline for submission of apprenticeship applications is April 13, 2007. The awards will be announced at the Council’s Annual Meeting in July.
To receive an application, artists should contact Arts Council Folk Arts Coordinator Kim Nguyen at 609.292.6130 or log on to the Arts Council web site at www.njartscouncil.org.
The application process requires that each interested folk arts apprentice apply with a master artist as a team by providing information on their shared artistic and cultural backgrounds and their planned scope of work. They must also submit audio visual materials that detail their level of skill and preparation. The teams may carry out their work over the course of twelve months or less, and may also have the opportunity to present their traditions to other audiences as well as to their own communities.
Over the last nine years, the Council’s Folk Arts Apprenticeship Program has assisted more than a hundred artists who comprise a fascinating spectrum of traditional arts and crafts. Some of the apprenticeships included Filipino calligraphy and rondalla music; Puerto Rican cuatro building and the traditional jibaro music it plays; Native American song and women’s dance; Ukrainian pyzanky; Japanese ceremonial kimekomi dolls and taiko music; African American gospel music, folk songs, and social dance; Mehndi (used to decorate the hands and feet of Indian brides) and tabla drumming; Pinelands region basketmaking; West African drumming and dance; Irish set dancing; Chinese Opera music and many others.
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