New Hampshire Folk and Traditional Arts Lesson Plans

Granite State Arts Academy students performing a Traditional Indian Dance during the culmination of an Artist in Residence Program with Master Artist Jasmine Shah.

Deeply rooted within the New Hampshire landscape, traditional arts have been passed on and preserved beginning with our indigenous communities through European settlement to the newly emerging New American and ethnic communities of today. All of us belong to communities or groups that have something in common--a language, a geographic area, an ethnic heritage, a religion, an occupation, or a way of life. Each group, both old and new, express their own traditions, arts, music, crafts, stories, and values that are a vital piece of New Hampshire’s living cultural heritage. Traditional arts connect us to our past, encourage respect and appreciation for diverse cultures and traditions, build strong communities, and cultivate cultural assets. As society and communities continue to evolve, it becomes more and more important to celebrate and learn about our traditions.


Nelson Elementary School Students learning about Albert Quigley and his impact in Nelson by Master Artists Allison and Hunt Smith and Harvey Tolman.

To help our youngest residents learn about a wide range of traditional arts that are practiced in the Granite State, the N.H. State Council on the Arts’ Heritage and Traditional Arts Program developed the Folk and Traditional Arts Lesson Plans to increase the awareness and appreciation of local art forms and cultural traditions through K-12 connections. Designed for 4th and 5th grade classroom teachers who have no prior experience in the arts, the lessons focus on a wide range of traditional art forms including French-Canadian Music and Culture, Contra Dancing, Fly Tying, Abenaki Beadwork, Bhutanese Folk Arts and much more.

Master Artist Alice Ogden teaching basket weaving to students at Holderness Central School.

Sharing the cultural and artistic traditions of a community offers opportunities for youth to engage in hands on learning, make connections to their own culture as well as others, develop empathy and understanding for diverse cultural expressions and affirms what makes their own community and New Hampshire a distinct place to live. These interdisciplinary connections and skills can be used to support the curriculum of other subjects including social studies, language arts, geography, earth science, mathematics and - of course - visual arts, music, dance and theatre, thus providing a more meaningful and successful foundation for engaged citizens. 

Students working together to spin wool during a lesson at Weston Elementary School in Manchester.



To access the NHSCA’s Folk and Traditional Arts lesson plans, please visit the NH Folklife website and click on the Learning Center. We welcome your feedback as you implement these lessons!

Fred Dolan Awarded 2017 Governor's Arts Award for Folk Heritage

The New Hampshire State Council on the Arts is delighted to announce Fred Dolan, a master wildfowl carver, painter and teacher, as the recipient of the 2017 Governor's Arts Awards in Folk Heritage. The Folk Heritage Award "recognizes a New Hampshire traditional folk artist who has made a significant contribution to his or her art form and the cultural community, reflecting a lifetime of achievement."                              

Originally designed as utilitarian devices for hunting purposes throughout North America, decoy styles were suited to local hunting conditions and methods. After the passing of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918, the tradition of decoy carving and painting evolved from this utilitarian function to the simple and beautiful “portraits” of wildfowl that have become works of fine craftsmanship and treasured pieces of folk art. Through generations of master craftsmen and carvers, the basic form and function of a decoy has been constant even though styles and wildfowl species vary regionally.


Having grown up along the Salmon Falls River in Somersworth, New Hampshire, Mr. Dolan has always had an inclination toward nature and wildlife. With this enduring interest and influence, he has made decoy carving his life’s work since the early 1980’s. He has studied decoy carving under master artists in New England including Paul Bowden and Jim White and on the Eastern shore of the Chesapeake, taken extensive courses in drawing, ornithology, carving techniques, sculpture and art as well as conducted research on wildfowl form and habits at the Audubon Society, museums, galleries and from the numerous observation points at his home.


Mr. Dolan’s accolades are extensive including representing New Hampshire at the 1999 Smithsonian Folklife Festival in Washington, D.C., demonstrating at the Lowell Folk Festival in MA, being an active juried member of the League of NH Craftsmen since 1982, and participating and winning  Best in Show at the Ward World Championship Wildfowl Carving Competition in Maryland. His work has been featured in numerous exhibits including Shaping our Heritage and Deeply Rooted: New Hampshire Traditions in Wood, carving competitions and demonstrations and art galleries in New Hampshire, New England and nationally. In addition to his exceptional ability as a craftsman, Mr. Dolan generously teaches carving classes in his studio and has taught numerous apprentices through the NH State Council on the Arts Traditional Arts Apprenticeship program where he is the most decorated artist in the program's history.

A total of 6 awards will be presented by Governor Chris Sununu at a ceremony and reception on Wednesday, November 1, from 5-7:30pm at the New Hampshire Institute of Art in Manchester. 

The 2017 Governor's Arts awards winners are:

• Arts Education: Randy Armstrong, Barrington
• Arts in Health: Dartmouth-Hitchcock Creative Arts Program, Lebanon
• Creative Communities: City of Nashua
• Distinguished Arts Leadership: Susan Strickler, Manchester
• Folk Heritage: Fred Dolan, Strafford
• Lotte Jacobi Living Treasure: Richard Whitney, Stoddard

2017 Festivals, Fairs & Celebrations in New Hampshire!

Colombian Dancers at the 2016 Concord Multicultural Festival. Photo by Anura Guruge. 

It's that time again in New Hampshire-summer time (next week officially anyway)! Good weather (hopefully!) coupled with great food, music, culture, arts and community- there are lots of celebrations, fairs and festivals to be excited about this summer! Below are some festivals, fairs and other celebrations in and around New Hampshire to enjoy! Make sure to check out area Old Home Days, music and food festivals  and agricultural fairs as well!

June 23-25	Biddeford, ME	35th La Kermesse Franco-Americaine Festival
June 24	Concord, NH	Concord Multicultural Festival
June 29-July 4, July 6-9	Washington, D.C.	Smithsonian Folklife Festival: Circus Arts, On the Move, 50 Year / 50 Objects & 50th Anniversary
July 8-9	Warner, NH	MKIM Annual Intertribal Pow Wow
July 9	Laconia, NH	Jewish Food Festival
July 15	Exeter, NH	American Independence Festival
July 28-30	Lowell, MA	Lowell Folk Festival
August 5-13	Newbury, NH	League of NH Craftmen's Fair
August 18-20	Manchester, NH	Mahrajan Middle Eastern Festival
August 18-20	Lincoln, NH	Boogie N' Blues Festival
August 19	Manchester, NH	We Are One-African, Caribbean and Latino Festival
August 26-27	Manchester, NH	Greek Fest
September 2-3	Dover, NH	Dover Greek Festival
September 8-10	Greensboro, NC	National Folk Festival
September 9	Laconia, NH	Laconia Multicultural Festival
September 15-17	Lincoln, NH	New Hampshire Highland Games & Festival
September 23	Hillsborough, NH	Schnitzel Fest New Hampshire
September 23-24	Portsmouth, NH	Portsmouth Maritime Folk Festival

Americans for the Arts releases Statement on Cultural Equity

 At the New Hampshire State Council on the Arts we put a lot of thought, effort, and action into ensuring creative opportunities are accessible to all. In Folk & Traditional Arts that usually means making sure the traditional arts of rural communities, folk and craft, cultural traditions, and religious artistic practices are given the means to be celebrated and passed down to younger generations. All of these unique artistic practices affirm and connect us with our diverse cultural heritage.

Americans for the Arts released their statement on Cultural Equity earlier this year. At one page in length, it is an inspiring reminder for what we need to work toward every day.

Definition of Cultural EquityCultural equity embodies the values, policies, and practices that ensure that all people—including but not limited to those who have been historically underrepresented based on race/ethnicity, age, ability, sexual orientation, gender, socioeconomic status, geography, citizenship status, or religion—are represented in the development of arts policy; the support of artists; the nurturing of accessible, thriving venues for expression; and the fair distribution of programmatic, financial, and informational resources.

Acknowledgements & Affirmations

• In the United States, there are systems of power that grant privilege and access unequally such that inequity and injustice result, and that must be continuously addressed and changed.
• Cultural equity is critical to the long-term viability of the arts sector. 
• We must all hold ourselves accountable, because acknowledging and challenging our inequities and working in partnership is how we will make change happen.
• Everyone deserves equal access to a full, vibrant creative life, which is essential to a healthy and democratic society. 
• The prominent presence of artists challenges inequities and encourages alternatives.
  
  Modeling Through Action
  To provide informed, authentic leadership for cultural equity, we strive to…
  
• Pursue cultural competency throughout our organization through substantive learning and formal, transparent policies.
• Acknowledge and dismantle any inequities within our policies, systems, programs, and services, and report organization progress.
• Commit time and resources to expand more diverse leadership within our board, staff, and advisory bodies.

Fueling Field Progress

To pursue needed systemic change related to equity, we strive to…

• Encourage substantive learning to build cultural competency and to proliferate pro-equity policies and practices by all of our constituencies and audiences.
• Improve the cultural leadership pipeline by creating and supporting programs and policies that foster leadership that reflects the full breadth of American society.
• Generate and aggregate quantitative and qualitative research related to equity to make incremental, measurable progress towards cultural equity more visible.
• Advocate for public and private-sector policy that promotes cultural equity.

Ann Winterling Awarded 2015 Governor's Arts Award for Folk Arts

The New Hampshire State Council on the Arts is pleased to announce Ann Winterling as the recipient of the 2015 Governor’s Arts Award in Folk Arts. 

Ann Winterling is a master of the traditional art of New England rug hooking, a craft that dates to the early 1800s. A history of the craft shares the efforts of ordinary women to bring beauty, comfort, and warmth into their homes. 

Ann has been hooking rugs for over 40 years beginning as a young mother when she took classes from the late Hallie Hall. She hooked with Hallie, who had learned from her own grandmother, for over twenty years. In reflecting on her years with Hallie, Ann recalled that, “It was so inspiring and uplifting to go there for class . . . After a while we had all learned to hook but we just couldn’t stop meeting together and doing things together.” Ann also studied with other well known traditional fiber artists including Mary Sheppard Buron, and Mary Anne Wise. She in turn has generously shared her cumulative knowledge with countless others throughout New England and the east coast.

Today, Ann's work is well respected throughout New Hampshire, New England, and nationally.  Her fine craftsmanship is noted for her ability to create personal, yet iconic, images of the New England life. Her work has been included in shows at the Museum of Folk Art in New York City, the Cahoon Museum of Folk Art in Massachusetts, the Worcester Center for Craft, the League of NH Craftsmen, and she was one of three featured traditional artists at a recent exhibit at the Shelburne Museum in Vermont.  Ann has been featured for her artistry and leadership in New Hampshire Magazine, Rug Hooking Magazine, the newsletter for the Association of Traditional Hooking Artists (ATHA), as well as numerous articles and publications featuring the tradition of hooked rugs.

A total of 6 awards will be presented by Governor Maggie Hassan at a celebration on October 21 from 5-7pm at the New Hampshire Institute of Art in Manchester.

• Arts Education Award: Calvin Herst, Concord and Anna Nuttall, Portsmouth
• Distinguished Arts Leadership Award: Melissa Richmond, Director, West Claremont Center for Music and the Arts
• Folk Heritage Award: Ann Winterling, Concord
• Individual Arts Patron Award: Meri Goyette, Nashua
• Lotte Jacobi Living Treasure Award: Jere Osgood, Wilton