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In communities throughout Rhode Island, artists participate in a wide range of folk art traditions ranging from dance to music, craft to sacred arts. While the work of these folk artists has roots in ethnic communities that span continents, religions, and languages, all of these artists participate in the common preservation of traditional art forms. At RISCA we believe in the outstanding contributions of Rhode Island artists with origins traditions that hail from places as diverse as Rhode Island’s own coastal lowlands and the tropical forests of Laos.
Through practice, apprenticeship, and revitalization of traditional arts, folk and traditional artists ensure the longevity of their cultural expressions. Passed on from one generation to the next, these art forms survive not as the result of instruction within formalized institutions, but through the course of daily life: techniques passed on from generation to generation through familial, tribal, and community instruction.
Ethnic groups from a wide range of communities have made their homes in Rhode Island. For generations, artists from Narragansett, Cape Verdean, and Hmong communities have been among many who have practiced their traditional art forms in this state. More recently, artists from places like Bolivia, Cambodia, Mali, and Nigeria have also made their way to Rhode Island, each of them contributing to the wealth and variety of Rhode Island’s artistic landscape.
At RISCA we are hard at work to ensure that the work of these members of the larger Rhode Island community might be preserved and celebrated for years to come.
Beyond Folk and Traditional artists, Rhode Island is host to an incredible variety of community artists. Coming from places as diverse as the folk artists whom we celebrate, these artists practice art forms that diverge from tradition practice. Rather than stemming from a long-standing tradition of apprenticeship, the work of these artists is the product of a more recent ingenuity. Sometimes without access to formal training, community artists have nonetheless proven themselves masters of their art. And while the roots of their practice might not be clearly traceable, these artists produce work that is vital to the artistic life of their communities and neighborhoods.
RISCA is committed to ensuring that these artists, who come from an incredible range of places and traditions, may also have the opportunity to share their practice with the Rhode Island community.