NYFS Gallery of New York Traditions

Folk Arts - New York Traditions, a consignment folk art gallery

The Gallery, featured in The Crafts Report, represents over sixty individuals currently living and working in New York State, including several Amish makers of furniture and rugs, toy makers, weavers, basket makers, and wood carvers and wood turners.

SHOP ONLINE AT NEW YORK TRADITIONS
for folk art, books, music, and handmade gifts

Find Out About Our

FOLK ART DEMONSTRATIONS

NYFS Notecards now available! Support NYFS and the folk arts with your purchase.

For your convenience, we accept Mastercard and Visa. To order, call our office at 518/346-7008.

The New York Folklore Society’s programs are made possible in part with public funds from the Folk Arts Program of the New York State Council on the Arts, a state agency.

New York Folklore Society
P.O. Box 764
Schenectady, NY 12301
518/346-7008
Fax 518/346-6617
nyfs@nyfolklore.org

The New York Folklore Society operates its Gallery of New York Folk Arts — New York Traditions — a consignment folk art gallery that provides a sales outlet for folk arts from New York State. Over 65 folk and traditional artists are represented in the gallery. This includes Iroquois (Haudenosaunee) beadworkers and basketmakers, wood carvers, quilters and other fiber artists, stone carvers, and furniture makers.

We also carry hard-to-find books of regional interest and audio recordings of folk and traditional music.

Beginning on May 3, 2010, the Schenectady Green Market moves outdoors to Franklin and Jay Streets, alongside Schenectady’s City Hall. In the spirit of collaboration, the New York Folklore Society’s Folk Arts Gallery will be open on Sundays from 10:00 - 2:00 p.m. while the Green Market is outdoors. We continue to be open weekdays 10:00 - 3:30 p.m. and Saturdays from 10:00 - 3:00 p.m.

Along with selling affordable traditional art, the gallery also provides educational material about the artists and their artistic traditions, which serve to enlighten the public about various cultural communities around New York State.

Demonstrations are made possible with a grant from the Schenectady County Initiative Program of the Schenectady County Planning Department.

KIDS’ ART FEST
Jay Street, Schenectady, NY
June 5, 2010, Noon – 4 p.m.

The Kids’ Arts Fest occurs each year on the first Saturday of June. The focus is on participation by Schenectady’s youngest residents and all events are free. Held on Jay Street, in the block that runs from State to Franklin, there are stages for performances on either end, with artist’s booths lining the Jay Street pedestrian walkway.
Kid's Art Fest in Schenectady in 2009 -2

Kid's Art Fest in Schenectady in 2009 -2

Bernard Domingo demonstrates his bead and wire sculpture art at the Kids Arts Fest in Schenetady

The Folklore Society has been participating since 2001, with hands-on folk arts activities which feature an artist. This year, Bernard Domingo of Yonkers worked with young people to show them his unique bead and wire scuptures, an art learned as a young person in Zimbabwe. Originally from Zimbabwe and now living in the Hudson Valley, Bernard Domingo makes wire and bead “critters” which showcase African animals. He also crafts detailed motorcycles and other small wire pieces.

The festival is sponsored by the ElectriCity Arts and Entertainment District and organized with the help of a loyal group of volunteers.

North by Northeast: Baskets and Beadwork from the Akwesasne Mohawk and Tuscarora. Exhibition: Sept. 25-Oct. 24, 2009, First Floor: Nott Memorial, Union College, 807 Union Street, Schenectady, NY 12308

As a part of the Hudson Valley’s Quadricentennial celebrations, the New York Folklore Society commemorated the vibrant cultural traditions of New York’s Haudenosaunee tribes with “North by Northeast: Baskets and Beadwork from the Akwesasne Mohawk and Tuscarora.” Read about this exhibition and see photos and video.

This photograph by Harry Wirtz.

Located in an airy and light-filled storefront on historic Jay Street in Schenectady, we offer a wide variety of woodcarving, quilts, decoys, Iroquois handicrafts, handwoven baskets, historic tinware, Amish furniture and quilted wallhangings, and books and CD’s of regional significance among many other items related to New York State.

Please take the time to come visit with us and peruse journals of New York Folklore dating back to its inception in 1945, and our many other publications.

For a closer look at some of the unique handmade items for sale in the Gallery and information about the artists who created them, click on any of the photos below. If you are interested in purchasing any of these type of items, or even if you are looking for something else that you don’t see here, we invite you to call our office at 518/346-7008 for information about availability and pricing.

The New York Folklore Society has hosted a series of folk art demonstrations at the gallery at 133 Jay Street for the last several years, with support from the Schenectady County Initiative Program of the Schenectady County Planning Department. On November 26, 2005, Walt Fleming demonstrated traditional and historic tin smithing. In December 2005, we hosted more demonstrations: Hooked rugs with Diane Burk, wood carving with Carol Borst, and songs of the season with Stanley Ransom.

Previously, we have hosted Xrystya Szyika demonstrating pysanky, a Ukranian and Polish Easter tradition involving the elaborate dyeing of eggs; Rita Chrisjohn-Benson demonstrating Iroquois crafts: Beverley Carhart presenting her elaborate woodworking skills; Barry Irving showing his West African drum making techniques; Everett Hartman demonstrating his fine skills at Marquetry (a wood inlaying process); Nefisa Khanshab demonstrating the art of mehendi; and stonecarver Mark Swanberry showing his innovative skills with native Catskill bluestone.

The Gallery of New York Folk Art presented
TEXTURED STORIES: An Exhibition featuring the work of Denise Allen, folk artist and master craftswoman from Palatine Bridge, NY
Opening wine-and-cheese reception with the artist: Thursday, March 4, 5 p.m.-7 p.m.
Gallery Hours: 10 a.m - 4 p.m.
Gallery of New York Folk Art, 133 Jay St., Schenectady, NY
Contact: 518.346.7008, email: lisa@nyfolklore.org
Cost: Free and open to the public; light refreshments served
As a folk artist who predominately focuses on themes of African American colonial life and country living, Allen creates one-of-a-kind textured artwork employing various techniques, prints, dolls, and story cloths. Her work has been featured nationally and internationally, and in February 2010, she unveiled her latest piece, a 9-11 story cloth that will be housed at the forthcoming 9-11 memorial in New York City.

February 25, 2010 - March 26, 2010

The gallery is made possible with the generous support of the
William Gundry Broughton Charitable Foundation