The Smithsonian Institution Festival of American Folklife, held annually since 1967 on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., was renamed the Smithsonian Folklife Festival in 1998. The materials collected here document the planning, production, and execution of the annual Festival, produced by the Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage (1999-present) and its predecessor offices (1967-1999). An overview of the entire Festival records group is available here: Smithsonian Folklife Festival records.
Scope and Contents note:
This collection documents the planning, production, and execution of the 1976 Festival of American Folklife. Materials may include photographs, audio recordings, motion picture film and video recordings, notes, production drawings, contracts, memoranda, correspondence, informational materials, publications, and ephemera. Such materials were created during the Festival on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., as well as in the featured communities, before or after the Festival itself.
Arrangement note:
Arranged in 9 series.
Series 1: Program Books, Festival Publications, and Ephemera
Series 2: African Diaspora
Series 3: Children's Program
Series 4: Family Folklore
Series 5: Festival Stage
Series 6: Native Americans
Series 7: Old Ways in the New World
Series 8: Regional America
Series 9: Working Americans
Historical note:
The Festival of American Folklife, held annually since 1967 on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., was renamed the Smithsonian Folklife Festival in 1998.
The 1976 Festival of American Folklife was produced by the Smithsonian Division of Performing Arts and cosponsored by the National Park Service.
For more information, see Smithsonian Folklife Festival records.
Introduction:
The Festival of American Folklife's first decade culminated with the Bicentennial Festival of American Folklife that took place for twelve weeks in the summer of 1976, from June 16 to September 6 (programs typically ran from Wednesday through Sunday each week). More than 5000 participants took part over the course of the summer. The 1976 Festival involved the participation of every region of the United States, 38 foreign governments, scores of American Indian tribes, and many labor organizations. Some 4.5 million people attended the Festival.
The Bicentennial Festival resulted from the collaboration of the Smithsonian with thousands of national and international scholars, community spokespeople, and cultural exemplars involved in the documentation, presentation, transmission, and conservation of cultural traditions. Preceding the Festival were several years of establishing cultural networks, training students, and providing opportunities for diverse peoples to interpret and present their traditions. The Bicentennial also saw the flowering of a touring program, begun in 1973, in which foreign groups at the Festival subsequently toured the United States. Scores of groups from the African Diaspora and Old Ways in the New World programs gave some 200 performances in 50 cities and towns across the U.S.
The 1976 Festival again took place in the western part of the National Mall to the south of the Reflecting Pool, between 17th and 23rd Streets (see site plan). It was co-organized by the Smithsonian Institution, Division of Performing Arts (James R. Morris, Director; Richard Lusher, Deputy Director) and the National Park Service (Gary Everhardt, Director). Ralph Rinzler was Director of the Festival, and Bess Lomax Hawes and Robert Byington were Deputy Directors of the Festival. Tom Vennum served as Ethnomusicologist, and Frank Proschan as Archivist. The Bicentennial Festival was sponsored by American Airlines and General Foods.
The 1976 Festival again featured seven thematic programs, complemented by a Festival Stage. African Diaspora featured different countries every two weeks. The Festival Stage brought together participants from other areas and - for the last four weeks - its own dedicated performers. Native Americans changed focus by region every week; similarly, Old Ways in the New World changed focus by country every week. Regional America (June 16-August 8) changed focus by region every week, and Working Americans changed focus by theme every two weeks, with an expanded program on Transportation the last four weeks (August 11-September 6).
The 1975 Program Book provided information on each of the programs. Biweekly, a Program Supplement provided schedules and participant information.
Shared Stewardship of Collections:
The Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage acknowledges and respects the right of artists, performers, Folklife Festival participants, community-based scholars, and knowledge-keepers to collaboratively steward representations of themselves and their intangible cultural heritage in media produced, curated, and distributed by the Center. Making this collection accessible to the public is an ongoing process grounded in the Center's commitment to connecting living people and cultures to the materials this collection represents. To view the Center's full shared stewardship policy, which defines our protocols for addressing collections-related inquiries and concerns, please visit https://doi.org/10.25573/data.21771155.
Forms Part Of:
Smithsonian Folklife Festival records: 1976 Festival of American Folklife forms part of the Smithsonian Folklife Festival records .
Smithsonian Folklife Festival records
Smithsonian Folklife Festival records: Papers
1967 Festival of American Folklife records - [Ongoing]
Related Archival Materials note:
Within the Rinzler Archives, related materials may be found in various collections such as the Ralph Rinzler papers and recordings, the Lily Spandorf drawings, the Diana Davies photographs, the Robert Yellin photographs, and the Curatorial Research, Programs, and Projects collection. Additional relevant materials may also be found in the Smithsonian Institution Archives concerning the Division of Performing Arts (1966-1983), Folklife Program (1977-1980), Office of Folklife Programs (1980-1991), Center for Folklife Programs and Cultural Studies (1991-1999), Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage (1999-present), and collaborating Smithsonian units, as well as in the administrative papers of key figures such as the Secretary and respective deputies. Users are encouraged to consult relevant finding aids and to contact Archives staff for further information.
Restrictions:
Access to the Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections is by appointment only. Visit our website for more information on scheduling a visit or making a digitization request. Researchers interested in accessing born-digital records or audiovisual recordings in this collection must use access copies.
Rights:
Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from the Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections. Please visit our website to learn more about submitting a request. The Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections make no guarantees concerning copyright or other intellectual property restrictions. Other usage conditions may apply; please see the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for more information.
The collection consists of 8,515 color slides taken by Dr. Marilyn Houlberg during various field studies among the Yoruba in southwest Nigeria between 1961 and circa 2007. The images depict Yoruba art and culture with a special focus on artisans, art objects, body arts, costume, festivals, hairstyles, indigenous photography, weaving and textiles. Cultural events depicted include Balufon festivals, Egungun and Gelede masquerades, social events (weddings, christenings, funerals), and religious ceremonies (initiation and animal sacrifice). Also included are various scenes of daily life, architecture, food preparation, markets, portraits and landscapes. Houlberg extensively documented Yoruba artists in the process of creating their art, including carvers Yesufu Ejigboye, Runshewe, and Lamidi Fakeye, as well as the final pieces themselves. Houlberg documentated art in situ, such as Yoruba house posts, shrines, wall art and wood doors and art objects, including Gelede masks, Ibeji (twin) and Eshu figures, Osanyin staffs, and Ogboni and Shango shrines. Manuscript and printed materials, including Houlberg's resume, thesis, and numerous published articles are also available in this collection.
Scope and Contents note:
This 6,567 slide collection documents Houlberg's studies in Southwestern Nigeria spanning from 1961 to circa 2005. In 2015, Houlberg donated an additional 1,948 color slides to the Eliot Elisofon Photographic Archives. These slides have been added to the EEPA 2005-002 finding aid, bringing the total to 8,515 slides.
The collection primarily includes photos of people, including the Ogboni, Pokot, Yoruba, Turkana and Igbo, shrines, festivals and rituals, art objects, and artists. A particular strength of the collection are photos of Balufon festivals, Egungun and Gelede masquerades, social events (weddings, christenings, funerals), and religious ceremonies (initiation and animal sacrifice). Also included are various scenes of daily life, architecture, food preparation, markets, portraits and landscapes. Houlberg mostly photographed in Ilishan, Ikenne, Ilara, Shagamu, Lagos, Ijebu-Ode, and Egbe.
Houlberg extensively documented Yoruba artists in the process of creating their art, including carvers Yesufu Ejigboye, Runshewe, and Lamidi Fakeye, as well as the final pieces themselves. Houlberg documentated art in situ, such as Yoruba house posts, shrines, wall art, wood doors and art objects, including Gelede masks, Ibeji (twin) and Eshu figures, Osanyin staffs, and Ogboni and Shango shrines. Several Yoruba art forms, including photography, scarification tattoos, and textiles (both cloth and dress), are represented in the collection. Additionally, there are numerous slides of Yoruba hairstyles, many of which she published in her article, Social Hair: Tradition and Change in Yoruba Hairstyles in Southwestern Nigeria.
Yoruba ritual specialists, such as Ife-olu Solaru, Olufunke, and Yesufu Ejigboye, appear frequently throughout the collection. Houlberg documented her many stays with these individuals over the years.
There is also one binder of manuscript and printed materials, including Houlberg's resume, thesis, and numerous published articles.
Arrangement note:
The collection is organized into 29 series according to subject. The series descriptions correspond with particular subjects used in Houlberg's teaching and lectures, and based on donor's notes. All slides were kept in the order in which they were donated.
Series 1: African Hairstyles, circa 1973-1994 (Binder 1; 212 slides)
Series 2: Egungun Festival, 1961-circa 1988 (Binder 1; 362 slides)
Series 3: Gelede, circa 1969-circa 1989 (Binder 2; 301 slides)
Series 4: Ibeji Twins, circa 1969-circa 1990 (Binders 2-3; 854 slides)
Series 5: Ogboni Art Objects and Shrines, circa 1969-circa 1982 (Binder 4; 92 slides)
Series 6: Art Objects Depicting Ogun, circa 1969-circa 1983 (Binder 4; 56 slides)
Series 7: Olojufoforo Art and Festivities, circa 1968-circa 1975 (Binder 4; 21 slides)
Series 8: Yoruba People, Architecture, and Art, circa 1969-circa 1985 (Binder 4; 260 slides)
Series 9: Carving, Art Objects and Artists, and Scenes of Daily Life, circa 1973-circa 1988 (Binder 4; 201 slides)
Series 10: Yoruba Art, circa 1971-circa 1983 (Binder 5; 49 slides)
Series 11: Yoruba Textiles, circa 1973-circa 1983 (Binder 5; 84 slides)
Series 12: Yoruba, Miscellaneous, circa 1967-circa 1989 (Binder 5; 251 slides)
Series 13: African Art, Textiles People, and Dwellings, circa 1963-circa 1983 (Binder 6; 58 slides)
Series 14: Ibo Mbari and Igbo Peoples and Artwork, circa 1967-circa 1985 (Binder 6; 212 slides)
Series 15: Art and Ceremonies, circa 1967-circa 1991 (Binder 6; 493 slides)
Series 16: Body Arts, Nuba People (Sudan) and Fulani and Bororo People (Niger), circa 1973-circa 1979 (Binder 7; 64 slides)
Series 17: People, Scenic Views and Animals of Kenya, Sudan, Angola, and Ghana, circa 1972-circa 1985 (Binder 7; 168 slides)
Series 18: Peoples and Arts of Ghana, Mali, and the Ivory Coast, circa 1966-circa 1992 (Binder 7; 406 slides)
Series 19: Published Maps and Photos, circa 1968-circa 1985 (Binder 8; 70 slides)
Series 20: Nigerian Masks and Art Objects, circa 1967-circa 1978 (Binder 8; 396 slides)
Series 21: Yoruba Festivals, People, and Art in Nigeria, circa 1967-circa 1988 (Binders 8-9; 128 slides)
Series 22: Yoruba Photography and Textiles, circa 1975-circa 1983 (Binder 9; 54 slides)
Series 23: Ife-Olu, Ilishan, circa 1980-circa 1988 (Binder 9; 87 slides)
Series 24: Yoruba Festivals, People, Hairstyles, Ibeji Objects, Eshu Figures, and Oya and Orishala Priests, Priestesses, and Shrines, circa 1966-circa 1988 (Binder 9; 168 slides)
Series 25: Shango, circa 1970-circa 1983 (Binder 10, 162 slides)
Series 26: Ara Festival, 1975 (Binder 10; 174 slides)
Series 27: Ceremonies and Festivals, Portraits, Art and Ceremonial Objects, Domestic and Market Scenes, circa 1969-circa 2005 (Binders 10-11; 759 slides)
Series 28: Yoruba Art Objects, and Domestic, Work, and Festival Scenes, circa 1971-circa 1983 (Binder 11; 104 slides)
Series 29: Manuscript and Printed Materials, 1973-circa 2005 (Binder 12)
Biographical/Historical note:
Artist, anthropologist, and art historian Dr. Marilyn Hammersley Houlberg was born in Chicago, Illinois, in 1939. Houlberg received an Associate of Arts degree from Wright Junior College (1959) and a BFA from the University of Chicago (1963). After graduating, she traveled to North Africa and explored Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, and Egypt. In 1964, Houlberg researched Haitian art, religion, and indigenous photography in Haiti and in 1965 was awarded a scholarship for graduate study from the University of Chicago. There she completed her MAT in Art History in 1967. Following graduation, Houlberg worked at the Nigerian Museum in Lagos, where she documented Yoruba sculpture, masquerades, religion, body art, and indigenous photography.
She began her teaching career at the University of Chicago as a lecturer on African art and African civilization, working there from 1971 to 1973. At the University of London, Houlberg earned a Masters in Anthropology, producing the thesis Yoruba Twin Sculpture and Ritual (1973). She also extensively photographed her travels abroad in Yorubaland. Between 1974 and 1990, Houlberg taught at the University of Chicago, Columbia College, Kalamazoo College, and Northwestern University. From 1974 to 2008 she continued teaching at The School of the Art Institute of Chicago, lecturing on Yoruba art and ritual in West Africa and the New World, and the art and ritual of Vodou in Haiti.
Houlberg has lectured worldwide at numerous museums and symposiums since 1972, including in Lagos, Nigeria; Jacmel, Haiti; Toronto, Canada; Salvador, Bahia, Brazil; and Cologne, Germany. Her essays have been published in several issues of African Arts. Some of Houlberg's significant publications include Arts of the Water Spirits of Haitian Vodou, in Sacred Waters: Arts for Mami Wata and Other Divinities in Africa and the Diaspora (2008) and Water Spirits of Haitian Vodou: Lasiren, Queen of Mermaids, in Mami-Wata: Arts for Water Spirits in Africa and the African-Atlantic World (2008). The exhibition Mami-Wata at the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art (2009) featured her photographs.
Provenance:
Marilyn Houlberg, 733 West 18th St., Chicago, IL 60616, Donation, 20050320, 2005-0002
Restrictions:
Use of original records requires an appointment. Contact Archives staff for more details.
Rights:
Permission to reproduce images from the Eliot Elisofon Photographic Archives must be obtained in advance. The collection is subject to all copyright laws.
24 Sound tape reels (Tapes VG-0001 - VG-0021 have been digitally transferred at 96kHz/24-bit with the exception of tapes VG-0018 and VG-0019. Tape VG-0018 has been transferred poorly. Tapes VG-0019, VG-0022, VG-0023, VG-0024 require conservation prior to transfer.)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Sound tape reels
Sermons
Date:
Undated, 1968-1979
Summary:
The Verna Gillis audio recordings consist of 24 open-reel tapes. The field recordings document work done by folklorist Verna Gillis in Haiti, Oklahoma, Philadelphia, and Cuba.
Scope and Contents:
The Verna Gillis audio recordings consist of 24 open-reel tapes. The field recordings document work done by folklorist Verna Gillis in Haiti, Oklahoma, Philadelphia, and Cuba between 1968-1979. Most recordings are of vodou ceremonies recorded in Haiti and church services led by Bishop Audrey F. Bronson. Also notable are performances by Comanche artist Joyce Lee "Doc" Tate Nevaquaya, an American Indian flute player.
Arrangement:
The Verna Gillis audio recordings are arranged according to numbers assigned to the open reel tapes by the RRFAC. Where more than one tape from the same day or event exists, those tapes are kept together in the overall arrangement.
Biographical / Historical:
Verna Gillis (b. 1942) is a New York-based music producer and holds a Ph.D. in ethnomusicology. She is known for her successful efforts to bring musicians from various immigrant communities to the forefront of the New York City music scene, helping to usher music from the Carribean, Africa, and Latin America into the mainstream of American life during the 1970s and 80s.
She was an Assistant Professor at Brooklyn College from 1974 to 1980 and at Carnegie Mellon University from 1988 to 1990.
From 1972 to 1979, Gillis recorded traditional music in Afghanistan, Iran, Kashmir, Haiti, the Dominican Republic, Cuba, Peru, Surinam, and Ghana.
In 1979, she opened Soundscape, a non-profit multi-cultural performance space in New York City, on west 52nd Street which she directed for the next five years. A New York Times profile from 1990 described the energy and importance of the performance space at this time: Gillis would book "lectures by the jazz saxophonist Archie Shepp, voodoo ceremonies by the Haitian ensemble Troupe Makandal, art rock by the guitarist Arto Lindsay. David Byrne, Hal Wilner and Bill Laswell of the downtown musical crowd were regular listeners. The two giants of free jazz, Cecil Taylor and Ornette Coleman, collaborated for the first time ever in Soundscape, playing informally together over a two-week span of 1980." [1]
Gillis had to close Soundscape in 1987 after it went too deeply into debt, but she continued to be a force in the music community of the city. Gillis began a new career managing and producing international musicians including Youssou N'dour from Senegal, Yomo Toro from Puerto Rico, Salif Keita form Mali, and Carlinhos Brown from Brazil.
Gillis produced sixteen albums on Folkways/Smithsonian Folkways Recordings, which include music from the Dominican Republic, Ghana, Haiti, Cuba, the Gambia, and Philadelphia, PA, as well as American Indian music and spoken word.
She was nominated for two GRAMMYs for her work as a producer: in 2000 for the Archie Shepp/Roswell Rudd Quartet Live in New York, and again in 2001 for Roswell Rudd's MALIcool.
Scope and Contents notes for each tape are composed of transcribed notes from the recto and verso of tape boxes. Archivist notes are in brackets.
Shared Stewardship of Collections:
The Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage acknowledges and respects the right of artists, performers, Folklife Festival participants, community-based scholars, and knowledge-keepers to collaboratively steward representations of themselves and their intangible cultural heritage in media produced, curated, and distributed by the Center. Making this collection accessible to the public is an ongoing process grounded in the Center's commitment to connecting living people and cultures to the materials this collection represents. To view the Center's full shared stewardship policy, which defines our protocols for addressing collections-related inquiries and concerns, please visit https://doi.org/10.25573/data.21771155.
Restrictions:
Access to the Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections is by appointment only. Visit our website for more information on scheduling a visit or making a digitization request. Researchers interested in accessing born-digital records or audiovisual recordings in this collection must use access copies.
Rights:
Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from the Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections. Please visit our website to learn more about submitting a request. The Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections make no guarantees concerning copyright or other intellectual property restrictions. Other usage conditions may apply; please see the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for more information.
Haiti: Freedom and Creativity from the Mountains to the Sea
Collection Creator:
Smithsonian Institution. Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage Search this
Type:
Archival materials
Introduction:
Haiti has long been beset with grave problems - and a few years after the 2004 Festival it would suffer the devastating earthquake of 2010. But Haitians' love of freedom nevertheless inspires them and nurtures their imaginations. Despite and often because of the challenges they have continued to face, Haitians create powerful artistic expressions in music, painting, crafts, sculpture, and architecture; in religion; and in language. The encounter ofTaino and African cultures, along with that of European colonizers, gave birth to the dynamic Creole culture that defines Haiti today. As a result, Haiti is one of the richest nations in terms of its culture and its people. Through the voices and creations of her people, that indefatigable and ever-resourceful spirit of creativity and resilience was celebrated at the Festival during Haiti's bicentennial year of 2004.
The creativity at the root of Haiti's heritage has been and continues to be expressed in many ways. In the visual and plastic arts, creativity may actually arise as the result of the distressed circumstances in which many people live. Thus, very often Haitian artists and craftspeople transform and restore life to things others throw away, like old carburetors, bent cooking utensils, or empty plastic juice bottles. It is that quest for new materials and forms that liberates their creativity, and, in turn, it is that creativity that validates their freedom.
Craftsmanship was one of the few dynamic sectors of Haiti's economy at the time of the Festival. In the city of Jacmel, for example, an especially vibrant and viable activity is the craft of papier-mache. Originally used to create elaborate and breathtaking masks for the traditional Carnival, papier-mache has become a veritable industry with artisans making mirrors, place mats, bowls, furniture, and other utilitarian as well as decorative products. Basketry and other straw work are also important commercial activities. Influenced by indigenous, African, and European traditions, products vary around the country, depending on the types of fiber that are available and the needs of consumers. Like weaving, woodcarving is an ancient art form drawing on Native, African, and European traditions. With certain species of trees such as cedar and mahogany disappearing, the supply of raw materials has dramatically decreased, but craftspeople continue to work. Carved stone frames, candlesticks, bowls, and trays are sold in craft shops. Areas that are rich in clay produce pottery. Such crafts were demonstrated at the Festival by skilled craftspeople, and the Festival Marketplace highlighted a number of local development projects in the craft sector.
The music of Haiti is a creolized music - like so much else in Haiti it is a synthesis of Taino, African, and European music created out of often violent encounters. The guido, a grated gourd scraped to create sound, the conch shell, and the rattle, still used in Haitian ritual music, are reminders of the music of Haiti's original Taino settlers. Their music, infused throughout the Caribbean, found willing company in the drumming vocabularies imported from West and Central Africa and perpetuated in the mountain enclaves where liberated Taino and African descendants (maroons) shared a mutual aversion to slavery and communicated ideas about the composition of the world beyond what was visible to the eye. Specific African sources of Haitian music and dance are most recognizable in the sacred music traditions of Vodou. Several drums, rhythms, and forms of ritual dance are named after their presumed origins on the African continent - rite Congo, rite Ibo, rite Rada (Yoruba or Fon), rite Senegal. Festival visitors had the opportunity to encounter these diverse traditions first-hand in an ounfò or ritual temple.
In addition to their long-term engagement with conserving Haiti's built heritage, Haitian architects and preservationists have begun to document people's ingenious applications of vernacular architecture's principles in urban areas to cope with overpopulation, pollution, and other difficult social and economic conditions. The recycling of materials such as old tires and plastic cups for use as flowerpots, and the vitality and spontaneity of the urban version of the lakou (yard) seen in Haitian slums, are convincing examples that vernacular architecture will continue to influence the future built environment in Haiti. Photographs and models allowed Festival visitors to understand these ongoing processes, as did custom-built structures on the Festival site.
In Haiti, Geri Benoit was Commissioner General and Patrick Delatour and Patrick Vilaire were Curators. At the Smithsonian, Diana Baird N'Diaye was Curator, with Olsen Jean Julien as Program Coordinator and Robert Maguire as Curator of Ayiti Cheri (for the Haitian diaspora).
The program was produced in partnership with the Ministry of Haitians Living Abroad and the Institut Femmes Entrepreneurs (IFE), in collaboration with the National Organization for the Advancement of Haitians, and enjoyed the broad-based support of Haitians and friends of Haiti around the world. Major contributors included the Haitian Government and Public Administration, USAID (Aid to Artisans), Rhum Barbancourt, Government of Taiwan, Government of Gabon, Federation of Native Coffee Producers and Development Alternatives Inc. (Haitian Blue), HaiTel, UNESCO, Comcel, DairnlerChrysler, Inter-American Development Bank, Merrill Lynch, SOFIHDES, Unibank, U.S. Embassy in Haiti, Jean Marie Vorbe, Youri Mevs, Clement Beyda, and Harriet Michel. Major in-kind support came from Seaboard Marine and American Airlines with additional assistance from Valerio Canez, Sun Auto, S.A., and Drexco.
Researchers:
Abnor Adély, Michaelle Craan, Raoul Denis, Alex Duquella, Louis Antoine Elysée, Gisele Fleurant, Jean Claude Garoute, Henry Robert Jolibois, Eddy Lubin, Nicole Lumarque, Robert Maguire, Jean Claude Martineau, Frantz Pierre, Jacqueline Pompilus, Pascal Théodore
Presenters:
Mireille Bernardin, Barbara Christophe, Michaelle Craan, Gertie David, Patrick Delatour, Lionel Desmarrates, Alex Duquella, Gerdes Fleurant, Gisele Fleurant, Henry Frank, John Franklin, Jean Claude Martineau, Elizabeth McAlister, Lois Wilcken
Participants:
Agricultural Traditions
Joseph Séraphin Emile, banana farming and craft, Cazal, Haiti
Marie Manolette Honoré, banana farming and craft, Cazal, Haiti
André Telfis, coffee farming, Haiti
Marcel Fortuné, coffee farming, Haiti
Joseph Lovinsky, sugar cane and rum-making, Haiti
Building Arts
Frédéric Théodule, 1955-, Citadel restoration, Port-au-Prince, Haiti
Louiness Edmond, 1971-, carpentry, Haiti
Jean Robert Fanfan, 1960-, carpentry, Haiti
Savener Sévère, 1966-, carpentry, Haiti
Craft Traditions
Mamoune Clerossaint, basketry, Cote de Fer, Haiti
Dieu Puissant Lamothe, basketry, La Vallée, Haiti
Pierre Roland Samedi, basketry, Jacmel, Haiti
Anivin Valbrun, 1954-, basketry, Bombardopolis Corbeilles, Haiti
Jean Pierre Richard Desrosiers, 1973-, cut-metal work, Croix-des-Bouquets, Haiti
Lubernier Joseph, 1977-, cut-metal work, Croix-des-Bouquets, Haiti
Joel Louishomme, Artibonite, musical instrument making, Haiti
Pierre Fougère Chérismé, 1974-, needlework, Fond-des-Nègres, Haiti
Olipsie Daniel, needlework, Terrier Rouge, Haiti
Mireille Delismé, 1965-, needlework, Léogane, Haiti
Avila Raime-Lamy, 1951-, needlework, Cité Soleil, Haiti
Johnny Emmanuel Ambroise, paper crafts, Port-au-Prince, Haiti
Frantz Denejour, 1980-, papier-maché, Carnival costume making, Jacmel, Haiti
Tidier Levoyant, 1948-, papier-maché, Carnival costume making, Jacmel, Haiti
Rony Lundi, 1977-, papier-maché, Carnival costume making, Jacmel, Haiti
Milot Scutt, papier-maché, Carnival costume making, Jacmel, Haiti
Jacques Turin, 1968-, papier-maché, Carnival costume making, Jacmel, Haiti
Louisdor Jean, popular painting, Port-au-Prince, Haiti
Simon Victor, popular painting, Gros Morne, Haiti
Eriste Dumersier, pottery, Aux Pins, Haiti
Jean Bertho Pierre, pottery, Aux Pins, Haiti
Jean Louis Chéry, stone sculpture, Léogane, Haiti
Yves Lore Courtois, tap-tap construction, Carrefour, Haiti
Jean Eliser Sever, tap-tap construction, Carrefour, Haiti
Joseph Saint Juste Carilien, woodworking, Léogane, Haiti
Foodways and Sacred Feasts
Carline Elisée, 1985-, Port-au-Prince, Haiti
Nelie Gilus, 1962, Port-au-Prince, Haiti
Marc Antoine Elisée, 1980-, Port-au-Prince, Haiti
Joseph Frantz Pierre, 1953-, Carrefour, Haiti
Kids' Corner
Marie Lourdes Elgirus, Port-au-Prince, Haiti
Jean Claude (Tiga) Garoute, Port-au-Prince, Haiti
Maritime Arts
Pierre Louisnet Beaucé, Luly, Haiti
Sony Constant, Léogane, Haiti
Jean Gesner Elien, 1975-, Luly, Haiti
Osming Pierre, Bois Neuf, Haiti
Music
BALLADS
Boulo Valcourt, ballad singer, Port-au-Prince, Haiti
Kod-o-Bann, -- konbit -- music -- Kod-o-Bann, konbit musicMarie Yolene Papouloute Eugene, 1950-, Dondon, HaitiAnani Augustin, Cap Haitïen, HaitiMercile Sainterme, Cayes, HaitiMarie Enite Joseph, Cayes, HaitiRoseline Godar Jean Giles, Petit-Goave, HaitiYanique Florestal-Louidor, 1970-, HaitiMère-de-Grace Prédestin-François, 1969-, Haiti
Réginald Polycard and Friends, old-style -- konpa -- and Haiti jazz fusion -- Réginald Polycard and Friends, old-style konpa and Haiti jazz fusionRéginald Polycard, Port-au-Prince, HaitiRichard Barbot, Port-au-Prince, HaitiJoël Widmaier, Port-au-Prince, Haiti
San Rankin, -- rara -- music -- San Rankin, rara musicMérigène Valéus, HaitiRigal Mésidor, HaitiFrantz Eustache, HaitiChantale Dorléan, HaitiDieufort Dorléan, Haiti
Azor, vodou drumming and Haitian jazz -- Azor, vodou drumming and Haitian jazzLenord Fortuné, 1965-2011, HaitiFrançois Fortuné, 1963-, HaitiLemour Fortuné, 1957-, HaitiAugustine Fortuné-Massenat, 1962-, HaitiRose-Manie Fortuné, 1968-, HaitiJérome Siméon, 1973-, HaitiElius Ozius, 1958-, HaitiLudner Toussaint, 1959-, HaitiRonine Faustin, 1968-, Haiti
Storytelling
Joseph Jean François, Port-au-Prince, Haiti
Jean Claude Martineau, 1937-, Haiti
Voudou
Adely Abnor, Gressier, Haiti
Faucia Dumorney, Gressier, Haiti
Pierre Julmis, Gressier, Haiti
Collection Restrictions:
Access to the Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections is by appointment only. Visit our website for more information on scheduling a visit or making a digitization request. Researchers interested in accessing born-digital records or audiovisual recordings in this collection must use access copies.
Collection Rights:
Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from the Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections. Please visit our website to learn more about submitting a request. The Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections make no guarantees concerning copyright or other intellectual property restrictions. Other usage conditions may apply; please see the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for more information.
Collection Citation:
Smithsonian Folklife Festival records: 2004 Smithsonian Folklife Festival, Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections, Smithsonian Institution.
Festival Recordings:Veve Workshop: Sacred Drawings of Ezili (Fran Gressier, Abnor Adely, Faucia Demorney) (Yvon Fleurival, Henry Frank); Vodou Rhythms and Ritual Drumming (Abnor Adely, Faucia Demorney)(Yvon Fleurival)
Collection Creator:
Smithsonian Institution. Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage Search this
Extent:
1 Sound recording (compact audio cassette)
Type:
Archival materials
Sound recordings
Date:
2004 June 24
Collection Restrictions:
Access to the Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections is by appointment only. Visit our website for more information on scheduling a visit or making a digitization request. Researchers interested in accessing born-digital records or audiovisual recordings in this collection must use access copies.
Collection Rights:
Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from the Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections. Please visit our website to learn more about submitting a request. The Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections make no guarantees concerning copyright or other intellectual property restrictions. Other usage conditions may apply; please see the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for more information.
Collection Citation:
Smithsonian Folklife Festival records: 2004 Smithsonian Folklife Festival, Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections, Smithsonian Institution.
Festival Recordings: Vodou Rhythms and Ritual Drumming (Abnor Adely, Faucia Demorney)(Yvon Fleurival); Vodou in Haitian History (Henry Frank, Yvon Fleuvial)(Henry Frank); Drumming and Singing (Abnor Adely) (Yvon Fleurival, Henry Frank)
Collection Creator:
Smithsonian Institution. Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage Search this
Extent:
1 Sound recording (compact audio cassette)
Type:
Archival materials
Sound recordings
Date:
2004 June 24
Collection Restrictions:
Access to the Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections is by appointment only. Visit our website for more information on scheduling a visit or making a digitization request. Researchers interested in accessing born-digital records or audiovisual recordings in this collection must use access copies.
Collection Rights:
Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from the Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections. Please visit our website to learn more about submitting a request. The Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections make no guarantees concerning copyright or other intellectual property restrictions. Other usage conditions may apply; please see the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for more information.
Collection Citation:
Smithsonian Folklife Festival records: 2004 Smithsonian Folklife Festival, Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections, Smithsonian Institution.
This collection contains a variety of materials including (1,615) 35 mm color slides, circa 400 photographic prints, 1 box of manuscript materials, 1 notebook, 52 audio and 1 video cassettes, and 1 CD-ROM. Many of the slides and photographs were taken during Houlberg's field work in Nigeria (1973-1975) and depict Ibeji figures, wood carvings, Egungun masquerades and masks, twins, portraits, hairstyles, festivals, shrines, textiles, and peoples including the Yoruba, Ekoi, Ibibio, and Ogoni. The audiocassettes consist of lectures, music, field records, and interviews.
Scope and Contents:
This collection contains (1,615) 35 mm color slides, circa 400 photographic prints, 1 box of manuscript materials, 1 notebook, 52 audio and 1 video cassettes, and 1 CD-ROM.
Many of the slides were taken during Houlberg's field work in Nigeria (1973-1975) and depict Ibeji figures, wood carvings, textiles, portraits, and peoples including the Yoruba, Ekoi, Ibibio, and Ogoni. The photographic prints include images of wooden figures, Ibeji figures, hair styles, masquerade masks, twins, portraits, and carvings by Awenke of Ketu, Yesufu Ejiboye, Ogunyomi Sona, and Awolowo Adelaku of Ikenne. Events documented include age grade processions, market scenes, the Agemo festival, and both Egungun masquerades and Gelede at Otu. There are also photographs of shrines which include the Abiku, Shango, Dada, Shoponu, and Odudua shrines. The photographs were primarily taken in Ilishan, Balufon, Ikenne, Lagos, the Field Museum (Chicago), and Akio, Ijebu.
The manuscript materials date to the 1980s and include correspondence related to Nigerian museum objects, correspondence with Susan Vogel about an Edan Ogboni photograph, articles about African art, exhibit catalogues, business cards, Nigerian and Haitian studio photography, travel brochures, and essays about styles of carving.
A few of the photographs were taken by Mark Schiltz.
Biographical / Historical:
Artist, anthropologist, and art historian Dr. Marilyn Hammersley Houlberg was born in Chicago, Illinois, in 1939. Houlberg received an Associate of Arts degree from Wright Junior College (1959) and a BFA from the University of Chicago (1963). After graduating, she traveled to North Africa and explored Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, and Egypt. In 1964, Houlberg researched Haitian art, religion, and indigenous photography in Haiti and in 1965 was awarded a scholarship for graduate study from the University of Chicago. There she completed her MAT in Art History in 1967. Following graduation, Houlberg worked at the Nigerian Museum in Lagos, where she documented Yoruba sculpture, masquerades, religion, body art, and indigenous photography. She began her teaching career at the University of Chicago as a lecturer on African art and African civilization, working there from 1971 to 1973. At the University of London, Houlberg earned a Masters in Anthropology, producing the thesis Yoruba Twin Sculpture and Ritual (1973). She also extensively photographed her travels abroad in Yorubaland. Between 1974 and 1990, Houlberg taught at the University of Chicago, Columbia College, Kalamazoo College, and Northwestern University. From 1974 to 2008 she continued teaching at The School of the Art Institute of Chicago, lecturing on Yoruba art and ritual in West Africa and the New World, and the art and ritual of Vodou in Haiti. Houlberg has lectured worldwide at numerous museums and symposiums since 1972, including in Lagos, Nigeria; Jacmel, Haiti; Toronto, Canada; Salvador, Bahia, Brazil; and Cologne, Germany. Her essays have been published in several issues of African Arts. Some of Houlberg's significant publications include Arts of the Water Spirits of Haitian Vodou, in Sacred Waters: Arts for Mami Wata and Other Divinities in Africa and the Diaspora (2008) and Water Spirits of Haitian Vodou: Lasiren, Queen of Mermaids, in Mami-Wata: Arts for Water Spirits in Africa and the African-Atlantic World (2008). The exhibition Mami-Wata at the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art (2009) featured her photographs.
Related Materials:
The Eliot Elisofon Photographic Archives also holds several other collections by Marilyn Houlberg: one collection documents Nigeria (EEPA 2005-002) and two others documents Haiti (EEPA 2012-004 and EEPA 2015-016).
Restrictions:
Use of original records requires an appointment. Contact Archives staff for more details.
Rights:
Permission to reproduce images from the Eliot Elisofon Photographic Archives must be obtained in advance. The collection is subject to all copyright laws.
The Marilyn Houlberg Haiti Collection includes negatives, audio cassettes, video reels, prints, CDs, DVDs, field books, and manuscript materials, including lecture/research files and correspondence, which were created from the 1970s to circa 2012 by Houlberg and focus on the arts and culture of Haiti, especially those of the Afro-Caribbean religion of Voudou.
Scope and Contents:
The Marilyn Houlberg Haiti Collection includes approximately (267) 35mm color negatives, (8) audio cassettes, (19) Video8 (8mm video format) reels, (27) CD-ROMS, (1) CD, (12) DVD-ROMS, (1) Super8 reel, (4,011) color slides, (3,012) color photographic prints (12 x 16 inches or smaller), hundreds of copy prints, (7) memory cards, (1) canister of 35mm film, and manuscript materials, including correspondence, (30) field books and lecture/research files that were created by Houlberg from the 1970s to circa 2012, and which focus on the arts and culture of Haiti, especially those of the Afro-Caribbean religion of Voudou.
The research files include notes that informed her teaching, exhibitions, and publications, including: "Haitian Studio Photography: A Hidden World of Images" in Rebecca Busselle, ed., Haiti: Feeding the Spirit (1992); Sacred Arts of Haitian Vodou (exhibition catalog, 1998); and "Water Spirits of Haitian Vodou: Lasiren, Queen of Mermaids", in Mami-Wata: Arts for Water Spirits in Africa and the African-Atlantic World (2008).
Biographical / Historical:
Artist, anthropologist, and art historian Dr. Marilyn Hammersley Houlberg was born in Chicago, Illinois, in 1939. Houlberg received an Associate of Arts degree from Wright Junior College (1959) and a BFA from the University of Chicago (1963). After graduating, she traveled to North Africa and explored Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, and Egypt. In 1964, Houlberg researched Haitian art, religion, and indigenous photography in Haiti and in 1965 was awarded a scholarship for graduate study from the University of Chicago. There she completed her MAT in Art History in 1967. Following graduation, Houlberg worked at the Nigerian Museum in Lagos, where she documented Yoruba sculpture, masquerades, religion, body art, and indigenous photography.
She began her teaching career at the University of Chicago as a lecturer on African art and African civilization, working there from 1971 to 1973. At the University of London, Houlberg earned a Masters in Anthropology, producing the thesis Yoruba Twin Sculpture and Ritual (1973). She also extensively photographed her travels abroad in Yorubaland. Between 1974 and 1990, Houlberg taught at the University of Chicago, Columbia College, Kalamazoo College, and Northwestern University. From 1974 to 2008 she continued teaching at The School of the Art Institute of Chicago, lecturing on Yoruba art and ritual in West Africa and the New World, and the art and ritual of Vodou in Haiti.
Houlberg has lectured worldwide at numerous museums and symposiums since 1972, including in Lagos, Nigeria; Jacmel, Haiti; Toronto, Canada; Salvador, Bahia, Brazil; and Cologne, Germany. Her essays have been published in several issues of African Arts. Some of Houlberg's significant publications include Arts of the Water Spirits of Haitian Vodou, in Sacred Waters: Arts for Mami Wata and Other Divinities in Africa and the Diaspora (2008) and Water Spirits of Haitian Vodou: Lasiren, Queen of Mermaids, in Mami-Wata: Arts for Water Spirits in Africa and the African-Atlantic World (2008). The exhibition Mami-Wata at the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art (2009) featured her photographs.
Related Materials:
The Eliot Elisofon Photographic Archives also holds several other collections by Marilyn Houlberg: two collections document Nigeria (EEPA 2005-002 and EEPA 2015-015) and another documents Haiti (EEPA 2012-004).
Restrictions:
Use of original records requires an appointment. Contact Archives staff for more details.
Rights:
Permission to reproduce images from the Eliot Elisofon Photographic Archives must be obtained in advance. The collection is subject to all copyright laws.
