Cloggers keeping folk arts alive
Folk art, which comes from the ground up, unites people and defines culture in ways few other things can. “Immigrants from many lands brought to America their own cultural heritage and together wove a tapestry of culture unique in all the world,” says Shawnda Bishop, founder and director of one of America’s premier folk-art groups, Clog America, based in West Valley City. “Generations of Americans have expressed their hearts and minds through the music, dance and other folk art that make up this cultural tapestry,” Bishop says. “But this tapestry is beginning to unravel. Young Americans are growing up without knowing or experiencing our traditional American folk art.” To counteract that trend, Clog America has launched a couple of initiatives. For one, Clog America is spearheading a campaign to build an American Cultural Heritage Institute. “ACHI” will be dedicated to the preservation and cultivation of such American folk arts as dance, music, craftsmanship art and poetry. The facility will be a center for classes and workshops and will have dance studios, music rooms, office space, costume-storage space and a Preservation Hall for community performances. Among programs on the agenda will be a free monthly Kids Culture Club that will help expose children to American folk arts. Read More at DeseretNews.com
