ICA | FOLK AND TRADITIONAL ARTS

I ACT
Idaho Artistic and Culture Traditions

Just Scratching the Surface…

“Abbu, Abdallah, Abdi, Abdul, Abdulahi, Abdulla, Abdulrahim.”
Open the pages of the Boise telephone directory and you will see
the city’s ever-changing cultural contours, as the area becomes
home to people from around the world.”
L. Marcus in Refugee and Immigrant Traditional Arts in Idaho

Designed to discover and document new artists, works of art, and cultural traditions in Idaho, Idaho Artistic and Cultural Traditions - I ACT first focused on the Treasure Valley. Survey findings will support cultural maintenance through apprenticeship grants and will foster economic development for artists in cultural, ethnic, and occupational communities. A broader, intangible benefit to communities statewide includes an enhanced awareness of the contributions of diverse artists to the quality of life and economy. Additionally, I ACT findings will inform the development of heritage tourism strategies in Idaho.

Folklorists Laura Marcus and Christina Barr were retained to survey the Treasure Valley. Marcus focused on immigrant and refugee traditional artists; Barr concentrated on other communities with assistance from community scholars Guisela Bahruth, Krista Oberlindacher-Lloyd, Wendy Downs, and by Boise State University’s Anthropology student Amelia Berg. Close to one hundred and fifty artists were identified and two thirds of that documented. These quotes from their fieldnotes and reports offer a window into the I ACT survey in the Treasure Valley.

Understanding the cultural Landscape As part of the I ACT team, I was assigned the task of conducting fieldwork specifically with established and new refugee and immigrant communities, and maintaining contact with the social service agencies that serve them. Ultimately, this project will update the FTAP Director’s understanding of the region’s cultural landscape, thereby facilitating better outreach to traditional artists and communities and allowing for more representative and inclusive programming. L Marcus

First steps - Engaging in this project without previous experience was, without doubt, a cause for much anxiety, but also anticipation. Understanding what the folk arts are, though superficially; the importance of traditions and their impact on culture provided the initial impulse for this adventure. Lacking professional equipment and experience in field documentation were only two of my problems. Fortunately, Maria Carmen was there to help me locate contacts, solve photographic problems, interview several people at once, or focus the conversation. G. Bahruth

One interview led to another… - Interviewing people for doing what they love to do is easy. I arrange for a meeting, I go to them or they come to me, I turn on the tape recorder….and away they go! It is like releasing a dam, or taking an apple out of the bottom of the pile - everything comes tumbling out. My interest in interviewing people about their musical heritage and cultures began as I found out several colleagues of mine were musicians, and even my daughter’s Spanish teacher was in the Basque jam group I listened to at First Thursdays. One interview led to another, and then to another. K. Oberlindacher-Lloyd

Hard at work on my report “I am anxious to have you see it - both because I am quite pleased with most of my photographs, and because I want to be sure my interviews have the right content. I start out with family history: where they were born, where their parents were born, i.e., how long they have been in the community. Since most of them are at least third generation (in the ranch life) they learned from their families. Even the silversmiths learned the rudiments, because at the turn of the century people needed to know how to repair their own equipment and a lot of it evolved from that. I got into process with some more than others and some, about goals or projects they would like to try. W. Downs

Thanks must be given to many people in the Valley, too many to name. We interviewed low-riders, poets, musicians, singers, fiber artists, dancers, gardeners, calligraphers, ranchers, cowboys and horse gear makers, silversmiths, traditional cooks... With a renewed sense of identity and appreciation for the place where we live, more interviews will follow.

I ACT was funded by the National Endowment for the Arts and the Idaho Commission on the Arts.

Maria Carmen Gambliel
director November 1, 2005

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