Applications Open - Vermont Traditional Arts Apprenticeship Program (VTAAP)
Now Accepting Applications for the Vermont Traditional Arts Apprenticeship Program (VTAAP)
The Vermont Folklife Center is pleased to open applications for this year’s Vermont Traditional Arts Apprenticeship Program (VTAAP). With funding from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Center initiated the program in 1992 to support the continued vitality of Vermont’s living cultural traditions. Applications are due August 24, 2020.
Inyange - A Burundian women’s dance group led by master artist Aline Mukiza. Photo by Aline Mukiza
In partnership with the Vermont Arts Council, VTAAP provides stipends of up to $2,000 to master artist and apprentice pairs to cover materials , travel expenses, and a stipend for the master artist’s time. Traditional arts such as American hand-weaving, Burundian women’s dancing, Franco-American singing, and Nepali sarangi playing have received VTAAP support.
The Folklife Center’s apprenticeships bring together individuals and communities that share a commitment to sustaining traditional art forms and keeping such cultural practices relevant to the communities who practice them. It pairs a community-recognized master artist who has achieved community-recognized expertise in their art form with a less-experienced apprentice. Together, the master and apprentice plan when, where and what they expect to accomplish during the apprenticeship. Apprenticeships range from short-term, intensive sessions to regular meetings spread over a year.
Learning the Nepali Sarangi with Master Artist Shyam Nepali. Photo by Mary Rizos
“We are deeply committed to supporting artists and apprentices from Vermont communities who have, and continue to be, underrepresented and under supported in the arts” said VFC Executive Director Kathleen Haughey. Last year, half of the VTAAP apprenticeships supported individuals from refugee backgrounds, and another 25 percent of the participants were based in rural areas of the state. The first years of VTAAP were dedicated almost entirely to supporting Abenaki cultural expressions.
“In addition to affording crucial access and support for less visible traditional cultural expressions, VTAAP offers a platform for people with highly specialized skills and expertise not only to teach others, but to develop skills in leadership, public engagement and community organization” Haughey added. “We’re excited to be part of a larger education movement right now that highlights the value of internships and apprenticeships outside of the conventional classroom. Our apprenticeship program is an ideal vehicle for personalized, experiential learning and genuine community engagement.”
Leno (Gauze) Weaving on a barn loom with Master Artist Kate Smith. Photo by Mary Wesley
More than 400 apprenticeships supported during the life of the program represent a broad cultural spectrum, from the arts of Abenaki, Yankee, and Franco-American regional cultures; to the arts of Somali Bantu, Burundian, Tibetan, Bosnian, Bhutanese Nepali and other New American and refugee communities.
VTAAP was initiated nearly thirty years ago to support Vermont’s living cultural heritage. The traditional or folk arts historically have been passed from generation to generation without the support of classes or public institutions. They were carried on because they had meaning in people’s lives. In a changing world the link between generations can be broken and time-honored knowledge can be lost.
Click below for information and application forms for the Vermont Traditional Arts Apprenticeship Program. Call (802) 388-4964 with questions.