FOLK & TRADITIONAL ARTS PROGRAM

In partnership with the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts

ABOUT THE PROGRAM
ICP promotes quality folk arts programs throughout Pennsylvania as a partner to the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts (PCA).

ICP develops and administers PCA's statewide Folk & Traditional Arts Program. Through technical assistance, individual artist grants, community traditions grants, services to the field, and discreet projects, ICP supports high quality traditional arts programming, services to Arts & Heritage and communities practicing traditional arts and customs, and the conservation of the traditional arts and customs found in the Commonwealth.

The folk and traditional arts are shaped and shared within families and neighborhoods, and in ethnic, language, religious and regional-based communities. They are learned and practiced within community settings and include crafts, music, dance and stories, as well as other traditional practices. Often, these traditions are passed down from one generation to another and are learned through on-going participation in community-based activities, and through observation or imitation of master practitioners. Within the framework of traditions that reflect a community’s values, identity, and experiences, folk and traditional Arts & Heritage display their artistry through creativity, style, and repertoire.

The Folk & Traditional Arts Program supports traditions and practitioners that are part of a living tradition within a community. Projects that respond to the needs of traditional Arts & Heritage and those that promise to have a significant impact within a community are especially encouraged.

For more information about the program or technical assistance, please contact Carlos Fernandez, ICP Folklife Specialist.