MIDDLESEX COUNTY
CULTURAL AND HERITAGE COMMISSION
FOLKLIFE PROGRAM FOR NEW JERSY
WHAT ARE FOLK ARTS ?
What are folk arts: often the first thing that usually comes to mind is "crafts" - home made items that sometimes can be bought at gift shops. This description is partially correct. However, we should not stop here. Because folk art is more than a handiwork, acquired in gift shops.
Folk art is life itself!
Our life is made up of shared traditions that are called "culture" by most people. These traditions are ways that we express ourselves within a community that has a common root and common understandings.
These shared expressions may take the form of music, religion, food, drama, handicrafts, plays, etc. They are learned through informal instructors who are living in our community, or through our relatives, passed down from generation to generation.
Thus, our traditional art works are family/community-based. They reflect our social structure and therefore they are seen as a foundation that holds our community together.
Folklife Program for New Jersey is a project of the Middlesex County Cultural & Heritage Commission. Its mission is to endorse and encourage our communities to identify unique artistic talents preserved and practiced by our residents. The program presents these important artworks within our communities and the general public. By so doing, we celebrate and share the diversity of our cultural society and encourage cross-cultural exchanges.
Our programs are designed to address the needs of all visitors. To that end, we utilize facilities that are [ accessible to people with disabilities.]
Our publications are available in LARGE PRINT and Braille. On-site nterpreters are also provided. All of our programs are free of charge.
Funded in part by
New Jersey State Council on the Arts/Dept of State, a partner agency of
National Endowment for the Arts, and by
National Endowment for the Arts, and the Middlesex County Board of Chosen
Freeholders/
Middlesex county Cultural and Heritage Commission
Middlesex County is the ONLY county in the state, with full-time, folklife staff and a county folklife program.
Folk Arts Are....
Basket making
Batik
Bead work
Body adornment (hair braiding, styling)
Crochet work
Dance
Music
Natural healing
Embroidery;
Instrument making
Quilt making
Natural dyeing
Cooking
Kite making
Gardening
Flower arrangement
Jewelry makingand designing
Clothes making
Wood working
Paper-cutting
Doll making
The Middlesex County Cultural and Heritage Commission is funded in part by
The New Jersey State Council on the Arts/Department of State, a partner
agency of the National Endowment for the Arts,
New Jersey Historical Commission, a Division of Cultural Affairs in the
Department of State.
Middlesex County Cultural & Heritage Commission, 703 Jersey Ave, New Brunswick, NJ 08901-3605
TEL:(732) 745 4489, FAX: (732)745 4524, Email: [culturalandheritage@co.middlesex.nj.us ], TTY: users only call (732) 745 3888.