Focus is on Rocky Mountain Foodways Dec. 2 at Jackson Hole Historical Society and Museum

Foodways! One of our favorite topics here at the Arts Council. Found this on Tammy Christel's excellent Jackson Hole Art Blog:

The Jackson Hole Historical Society and Museum opens “Key Ingredients: Jackson Hole Flavors,” on Sunday, December 2, from 1-5 p.m. Emphasis is on “local.” The exhibit explores Jackson Hole food culture and is associated with Key Ingredients: America by Food, a Smithsonian Institution traveling exhibition. Artifacts from the museum collection, including select recipes that have been interpreted, give museum visitors a sense of Jackson’s the evolving food culture.

At 2 p.m. Andrea Graham, Folklife Specialist, delivers a program entitled Foodways in the Intermountain West, says the museum. During the program attendees will learn about the importance of our food traditions. Graham studied food culture in the American Studies Program at the University of Wyoming, where she conducts fieldwork statewide and produces public programs.

Beverages and favorite cookies from Jackson Hole cooks will be served during Sunday’s afternoon opening celebration. Free! www.jacksonholehistory.org/

Latin Jam features Cheyenne's own Grupo Folklorico Sabor Latino

WAC announces plans to go to online application process for artist roster

WAC roster artist Bob Berky, a theatrical clown, actor, director and educator from Jackson

Attention all new applicants to the 2013-2014 Wyoming Arts Council Artist Roster!

Attention all new applicants to the 2013-2014 Wyoming Arts Council Artist Roster!

We are excited to announce that the WAC has decided to move from a paper application to an online application process for the 2013-2014 Artist Roster. The online application will completed via CAFÉ (Call for Entry), a program provided by WESTAF (Western States Arts Federation) in Denver. CAFE also provides information about other opportunities for artists.

The online application process will be available soon!

Because of this change to CAFE, we are extending the deadline date for new applications from December 1 to December 14, 2012.

In the meantime, we would encourage all interested roster applicants to explore the CAFE site at http://www.callforentry.org. You can register for free, read CAFE's guidelines and start preparing your supporting material (audio/visual clips, art images, resumes, etc) NOW, so you will be ready to complete the new roster application as soon as it is available. The new online application will be similar to the  2012-2013 Artist Roster application at http://wyoarts.state.wy.us/Roster/HowToApply.aspx. Take a look at it to see what information you should be compiling.

Look for more information soon on the WAC web site and the blog!

Singer/songwriter Bill Staines performs Oct. 15 at White Mountain Library in Rock Springs

On Monday, October 15, at 7 p.m., in the Gasson Room of the White Mountain Library in Rock Springs, singer/songwriter Bill Staines will be performing a concert.

Funded by the Wesswick Foundation, admission is free and open to the public.

Staines has been writing, recording, and touring for over forty years. In the folk tradition of Woody Guthrie and Tom Paxton, Staines writes of gold-seekers, cowboys, miners, romance, traveling, and the places along the way. Staines is one of this country’s best troubadours. He has performed extensively throughout the country from festivals to living rooms to coffeehouses, as well as on radio programs such as “Mountain Stage” and “Prairie Home Companion.” Bill’s songs have been recorded by other artists, such as Celtic Thunder, Nanci Griffith, and Jerry Jeff Walker.

For more information, contact Chris Kennedy at 307-382-1728.

Don King Days features cowboy polo, bronc riding and a concert by Jalan Crossland

Don King Days will take place at the Big Horn Equestrian Center in Sheridan County Sept. 2-3. Ten Sleep's Jalan Crossland will perform at 5 p.m. on Sunday, Sept. 2.

Events feature classic equine events like polo, steer roping, bronc riding and wild cow milking, both days. The Big Horn Equestrian Center’s few fences and big fields put the crowd right in the middle of all the action. The Don King Days events began when local ranchers came up with this unique combination of equestrian events to be held in honor of King, owner of King’s Saddlery and renowned saddle maker world-wide. King was the recipient of a Governor's Arts Award from the Wyoming Arts Council and a National Heritage Fellowship from the NEA.

FMI: http://www.sheridanwyoming.org/activities/rodeos/don-king-days/

Filmmaker plans second premiere on Sept. 8 for "The Coach: An American Crossroads"

This article was in the latest issue of the Wyoming Cultural Trust Fund newsletter: What happens when you have a film premiere event that sells out quickly and you have a waiting list of a 100+ folks…well, if you are Jennifer Tennican and the Jackson Hole Historical Society and Museum, you hold a Second Premiere! Okay, technically it is called a second screening. This locally produced film will be shown at 8 p.m. on September 8 at the Walk Festival Hall in Jackson, as part of the Jackson Hole Arts Festival. “The Coach: An American Crossroads” is a documentary film on the renowned Stagecoach Bar which serves as a prism projecting 70 years of Jackson Hole’s cultural evolution. The film introduces a multifarious cast, including the beloved Stagecoach Band, which has been serving up musical entertainment every Sunday for more than 40 years. Meet the Stagecoach Bar’s first owner Walt Callahan and attend his rowdy rodeos beginning in the 1940s. Then roll through the decades with ranchers, hippies, second homeowners, skiers, downhill bikers, Sunday night toe-tappers, Stagecoach Band members and Disco Night dancers, who all mix it up at this unpretentious and cherished community watering hole. The high-definition film features rarely seen and new discovered historic footage and photos along with interviews from everyone from old timers to newcomers to Western scholars. The WCTF is proud to have helped support this film with a grant to the Jackson Hole Historical Society and Museum. Additional funders include the Wyoming Arts Council, the Wyoming Humanities Council, the Wyoming State Historical Society and the Wyoming State Historical Records Advisory Board. Tennican donated her $25,000 prize money from the 2011 Wyoming Short Story Film Contest sponsored by the Wyoming Film Office and the Wyoming Office of Tourism for this project. In addition to grants and prize winnings, over 200 individuals, foundations and businesses have supported the project through tax deductible donations. 

Western & Jahiel team up for Wyofile profile of custom bridle and bit craftsman Tom Balding

Tom Balding in his shop. Photo by Adam Jahiel.

Two Wyoming Arts Council fellowship winners teamed up to profile custom bridle and bit craftsman Tom Balding in the latest issue of WyoFile.

The story was written by Sheridan’s Sam Western, a 2012 creative writing fellowship recipient in fiction and author of Pushed off the Mountain and Sold Down the River: Wyoming’s Search for its Soul. The excellent photos were shot by Adam Jahiel of Story. Adam has received two WAC visual arts fellowships and his “Cowboys on the Range” exhibit was seen in 2008 at the Wyoming State Museum in Cheyenne.

Sam explores Tom Balding’s intriguing life and delves into the details of his craft:

His passion for the last 28 years… has been horses and what riders use to influence their behavior: bits and spurs. Some of the world’s top riders use his custom-crafted products.

Balding’s snaffle bits, many made with gleaming bits of stainless steel, have a stark, sleek look. They feature mouthpieces of copper inlaid sweet iron, a cold-rolled carbon steel preferred by horses because the rusting tastes sweet.

His shanks, western-style bits connected together by a metal bar, range from bare-bones pieces of modern art to the more ornate, decorated with silver plate or initialed in bronze. They go by the name of Switchback, Steamboat, and Diamond Cross.

That's just a sample. Read the entire story at http://wyofile.com/2012/06/tom-balding-custom-bridle-bit-craftsman-was-inspired-when-bucked-off-a-horse/

John Frintzler and his Polka Band play in Pine Bluffs June 9 -- and on RFDTV tonight!

This comes from our very alert folk arts specialist Annie Hatch:

Wyoming favorite, John Fritzler and his Polka Band, perform tonight (June 6) on Mollie B Polka Party on RFDTV at 5:00 pm. John and his band play Dutch Hop, a traditional music for social dancing in the German Russian American community of the tri-state region of NE, CO and WY.

See John and his band live this Saturday, June 9, 6-10 p.m., in Pine Bluffs and the dinner dance held every year at the Pine Bluffs Heritage Center!

For information on additional show times see: http://schedule.rfdtv.com/?tz=2

For more on the band and Saturday's performance see: http://www.johnfritzlerpolkaband.com/

In the news: "Celebrating Dutch Hop"

Dutch Hop street dance. Photo by Ronna Lee Sharpe.

Last summer's "Celebrating Dutch Hop" event in Loveland, Colo., was featured in the Colorado Creative Industries newsletter. Similar gatherings were held in Wyoming and Nebraska. Organizers of the events featuring German Rusian Culture were Annie Hatch, Wyoming Arts Council folk and traditional arts specialist, and Georgia Wier, former CCI folklorist.

Yiddish Food Festival features Klezmer music, Israeli folk dancing and (of course) great ethnic foods

Hal Aqua and The Lost Tribe perform "noveau Klezmer music" May 20 at the Yiddish Food Festival in Cheyenne.

The seventh annual Yiddish Food Festival is scheduled to take place in Cheyenne at Mt. Sinai Synagogue on Sunday, May 20, between the hours of 11:00 AM and 4:00 PM. Mt. Sinai Synagogue is located at 2610 Pioneer Ave in Cheyenne Wyoming. The festival is an open-house style event designed to introduce visitors to Mt Sinai Congregation's historic building, rituals, music and delicious ethnic foods. FMI: https://www.facebook.com/events/289859201089398

The Festival includes Klezmer music, Israeli folk dancing, and Synagogue tours. Hal Aqua and the Lost Tribe, self described as playing "an exuberant musical experience, rooted firmly in traditional Jewish modes and melodies and driven by contemporary rhythms and danceable grooves," are scheduled to play Klezmer music. In addition, there will be trained, costumed folk dancers performing a variety of Israeli folk dances with time allotted to teach the audience.

The Yiddish Food Festival will also include a variety of traditional Jewish foods ranging from matzah ball soup and cabbage rolls to Israeli salad and rugelah. Each item is prepared using recipes congregation members have perfected through years of home preparation.

This project is supported in part by a grant from Wyoming Arts Council, through funding from the Wyoming State Legislature and the National Endowment for the Arts.

Great ethnic desserts, too...

National Historic Trails Center exhibit celebrates the creativity of fiber arts

The National Historic Trails Interpretive Center (NHTIC) in Casper is recognizing Women’s History Month with a temporary exhibit, “Wyoming Knits! Contemporary Knitting in the Cowboy State.”

A baby boy, Asher Rose, warmed with a hand-knit blanket, created by his aunt, Erin Rose. Photo by David Pelham.

The exhibit opens on March 3, and runs throughout the month. It celebrates the beauty and diversity of the fiber arts, and features over 100 examples of knit and crocheted items by Wyoming artists.

“The exhibit provides a modern day connection to our pioneer past,” said Trails Center interpreter Alex Rose.

Wyoming fiber artists from Casper, Cody, Lander, Riverton, Buffalo, Thermopolis, and Laramie contributed to the exhibit.

Pioneer women knit socks, mittens, even shawls. Today, fiber artists create hats, purses, slippers, stuffed animals, and even knit prosthetic breasts for breast cancer survivors.

“We often buy clothing made in other countries, in factories by machines, by people we do not know, with fabrics that are synthetic and unnatural,” Rose said. “With the fiber arts, people create items, with their hands, that express their love for family, friends and even strangers.”

Some of the items in the exhibit are available for sale, with part of the proceeds benefitting the National Historic Trails Center Foundation.

The following Wyoming yarn shops and organizations helped facilitate the exhibit: Cowgirl Yarn of Laramie, Dancing Sheep Yarn and Fiber of Casper, Fremont Fiber Arts Guild, Jennings Family Fibers of Riverton, Lucy’s Sheep Camp of Thermopolis, Mountain Meadow Wool Mill of Buffalo, and Needlework Paradise of Cody.

Erin Rose, curator of education at Fort Caspar Museum, and a knitting instructor, contributed to the exhibit.

For more information, contact Alex Rose at the NHTIC, (307) 261-7780.

Artful Hand Studios offers Ukranian Easter egg workshops through March 2

Traditional Ukrainian Easter eggs classes will be offered by Artful Hand Studios in Cheyenne. Wax and dye combine to create unique and beautiful Pysanky creations! Historical and contemporary designs will be demonstrated.  All supplies including a tasty homemade snack are included! Cost is $20 per student. Classes fill fast so register today. Call Georgia at 229-546-5183 or email at artsygeorgia@yahoo.com.

Class times:
Sunday Feb 26th 2:00 till 5:00pm
Monday Feb 27th 9:00 till Noon
Thursday March 1st 9:00 till Noon
Friday March 2nd 6:00 till 9:00 pm

"The Art of the Hunt:" A story about one that didn't get away

The Art of the Hunt: Ice Fishing

By Andrea Graham, UW Folklife Specialist

On Sunday, February 12, a group of folklore researchers and videographers accompanied Charles McCall of Cheyenne on an ice fishing trip to Crystal Reservoir in Curt Gowdy State Park. This documentation effort was part of the Art of the Hunt project being conducted by the Wyoming Arts Council’s Folk & Traditional Arts Program and the University of Wyoming’s American Studies program. We began at Charles’ house, where videographer Alan O’Hashi recorded him talking about fly tying and demonstrating the making of a fly used in ice fishing. Then we headed out on an unseasonably warm and un-windy day to the reservoir, where we helped Charles and his wife Liz set up their ice fishing hut, and watched as Charles drilled several holes with an ice auger. As Charles was fishing at a hole on the open ice, his rod suddenly bent down and he declared that he had a good-sized fish on the line. After a short battle, he pulled a four-pound, twenty-inch-long rainbow trout out of the hole for all to admire. Alan got it all on camera, and UW grad student Jessica King got some good still photos as well. Alan’s video footage will be used in support of grant requests for funding of an exhibit on The Art of the Hunt. And those of us new to ice fishing will always remember our first excursion and the dramatic catch.

Photo caption: Diana Helzer, Andrea Graham, Alan O’Hashi, Charles McCall, Liz McCall at Crystal Reservoir.

James McMurtry Sunday night headliner at Gillette's Donkey Creek Festival June 22-24

Not too early to start thinking about Wyoming summer music festivals! James McMurtry will be the Sunday night headliner for the Donkey Creek Festival June 22-24 at Gillette College. FMI: http://www.ci.gillette.wy.us/index.aspx?page=735

Wyoming shines at National Cowboy Poetry Gathering in Elko

Award-winning bosal by Lander's Mike Alley

I just returned from representing the Wyoming Arts Council at the 28^th annual National Cowboy Poetry Gathering in Elko, Nevada. The Western Folklife Center sponsors the annual event and brings regional folklorists in to introduce sessions, stage manage the evening shows and interact with the guest artists. 

While there, I witnessed good things happening for the Cowboy State. Wyoming was well represented in the humorous poetry of Andy Nelson of Pinedale and sage rhymes of Kaycee’s Georgie Sicking.

Rawhide braider Mike Alley of Lander had two pieces place in the juried gear show at the Northeastern Nevada Museum. His bosal received first and his headstall third. Mike attended the Gathering through an Individual Artist Professional Development grant from the WAC and brought along his mentor, Jack Mease. 

Sheridan saddlemaker Don Butler taught in “A Gathering of Masters: Leather Carving Workshop,” and later demonstrated his skill at the Center’s Wiegand Gallery.

Finally, Miss “V” The Gypsy Cowbelle of Cora attended to participate in the open mic performance stage where she caught the eye and ear of Baxter Black and was invited to open for his sold-out, one-man show the following day!

The event was fun, illuminating and exhausting, and I can’t wait for next year!

--Annie Hatch, WAC Folk and Traditional Arts Program Specialist

Wyoming Arts Council holds its artist roster selection panel Jan. 20 in Cheyenne

The Wyoming Arts Council will hold its annual artist roster selection panel on Friday, Jan. 20, 8:30 a.m.-4 p.m., in the Arts Council Gallery, 2320 Capitol Ave., Cheyenne.

The meeting is open to the public.

Every year, the WAC invites applications for its roster. A panel of artists and arts professionals then convenes to review the applicants and select those that meet the established criteria.

Last year, the panel selected 29 new artists and arts groups, raising the number of talented Wyoming roster artists to 69. Wyoming arts organizations, schools or communities can bring in any of these artists through an Arts Across Wyoming grant.

To view the current artist roster, or to get more information about grants, go to the WAC web site.

For more information about the panel meeting, please call the WAC at 307-777-7742.

Call for entries: Woody Guthrie Folk Festival Songwriting Competition

From a press release:

The Oklahoma Songwriters & Composers Association, in association with the Woody Guthrie Coalition, is proud to present the Annual Woody Guthrie Folk Festival Songwriting Competition.

This international, folk-oriented songwriting contest is held in conjunction with the annual Woody Guthrie Folk Festival, held in Woody's hometown of Okemah, Oklahoma, each July. This year's Festival dates are July 11-15, 2012. Okemah, the county seat of Okfuskee County, is located on Interstate 40 in east-central Oklahoma, and is 70 miles equidistant from Oklahoma City and Tulsa.

Songs should represent the spirit of Woody Guthrie's music and may fall into one or more of these general areas: topical songs about current events, songs containing political or social commentary, folk ballads, songs relative to Americana and related topics, and songs for children and/or pertaining to family life. Both traditional and newer styles of folk are encouraged. Songs must be original and should be copyrighted at time of entry.

Entry deadline: March 30.

FMI: http://www.woodyguthrie.com/2012_Songwriting_Competition.htm

People are lining up to apply for the Wyoming Arts Council's Artist Roster. Are you?

Application deadline is December 1, 2011
for the 2012-2013 Artist Roster.

Link to the application

Take a gander at the print roster

Teresa Jordan & Hal Cannon perform in Buffalo Sept. 14

Cannon & Jordan in Buffalo Sept. 14!

"A Sharper View of the West" at the Bradford Brinton though Sept. 5

Allan Mardon painting "Custer Battle II"

Aztec Pattern Carving Set by Ted Larsen

The Bradford Brinton Memorial & Museum in Big Horn presents "A Sharper View of the West," featuring paintings by Allan Mardon and knives by Ted Larsen through September 5 in the Main Gallery. FMI: http://www.bbmandm.org/current-exhibitions-events/