Music & Arts

But is it Folk Art? The New Nordic Art Show is seeking submissions

What is folk art? An upcoming exhibit at the New York Mills Regional Cultural Center in Minnesota is asking just that – and you can help with the answer.

Organized by co-curators Jill M. Johnson and Elise Forer, the New Nordic Art Show plans to explore what constitutes folk art. In a news release Johnson asks:

“Puffy shirts? Quaint music? Rosemaled wooden plates? Is folk art confined to one traditional canon? Is it allowed to migrate? Is it art of the people?”

Johnson is seeking people to submit pieces for consideration by August 15. Anyone interested in Nordic culture – including Sweden, Finland, Denmark, Norway and Iceland – are invited to apply.

Please send pictures (in .jpeg format) of the piece to Johnson at jill@kulcher.org. If the work isn’t completed, people can send in ideas as well.

“Please think authentically outside the box,” Johnson said in the release. “Perhaps you create folk drakt embroidery on a jean jacket, a rosemaled tattoo, a chipcarved baseball bat – the sky is the limit.”

The New Nordic Art Show opens Oct 8.