Building a Center for Cultural Organizing on Tucson’s south side
November 14, 2024
We’re thrilled to be working with grassroots organizers from Regeneración in building a Center for Cultural Organizing and heritage-based entrepreneurship to serve neighborhoods along the corridor of South 12th Avenue from 44th Street to Drexel Road (colloquially known as “La Doce”) in Tucson. In 2023, we purchased a property, 4009 S. 12th Avenue, to house
End-of-Life exhibit now online
November 7, 2024
Our exhibit, “Walking Each Other Home: Cultural Practices at End of Life” produced in collaboration with the Arizona State Museum in 2022/2023 is now online. View the exhibit here. This exhibit shares stories and traditions that were documented as part of our End of Life: Continuum project supported by the Arizona End of Life Care
In Memoriam: Terrol Dew Johnson (1973-2024)
May 9, 2024
“I started weaving contemporary baskets partly out of necessity. When I was 18, I didn’t have a car. When I would run out of material, I would look for other things to either weave with or incorporate—other plant material or sometimes metal and stones and bones and hair. All these things would go into my
Nominations now open for 2024 Master Apprentice Artist Awards
March 20, 2024
We’re continuing to support Arizona-based traditional artists and culture bearers in passing on their artforms though our annual Master Apprentice Artist Award. This year we’ll be making 10 awards—$5,000 for the Master artist and $500 to the emerging artist. Nominations are open now through May 15. Artists are nominated by peers within their community, cultural
Loom Market Online Art & Jewelry Auction March 14 – 28
March 7, 2024
Auction items include artwork by Indigenous, African American, and Mexican American heritage-based artists from Loom.Market, an online marketplace administered by SFA, where heritage-based artists can sell work, network, and preserve cultural knowledge. Find handmade Mata Ortiz pottery, African American Southern-style hats, Indigenous jewelry and more.
NEH funds SFA program to gather oral histories of climate change
January 10, 2024
We’re so excited to share that The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) has awarded funds to our a new ClimateLore initiative, an oral history project to document climate risk, loss, and adaptation in two desert regions of the US-Mexico borderlands. This version of ClimateLore is a partnership between SFA, Tohono O’odham Young Voices Podcast
Announcing the 2023 Master-Apprentice Artist Awardees!
December 14, 2023
We are so excited to finally announce this year’s Master-Apprentice Artist Awardees. This annual award offers direct support to master traditional artists living in Arizona to pass on art, culture, and heritage practices to apprentice learners. The recipients are nominated by community members and selected by a panel of cultural leaders and peers. Congratulations to:
Celebrating Artists At Work Residencies
November 22, 2023
Southwest Folklife Alliance connected Artists At Work and THE OFFICE with four southern Arizona traditional artists for the 2023 program. Artists At Work (AAW) leverages the power and creativity of artists to respond to local community needs across a range of issues including mental health, antiracism, environmental justice and climate resiliency, substance abuse recovery, and
Live Holiday Art Market | Dec. 1, 2023
November 3, 2023
An open-air winter market featuring Indigenous, African American and Mexican American heritage-based artists from LOOM Market Find that one-of-a-kind gift, or treat to something special, while you support heritage-based artists build their business and their art communities. Meet the artists in person!Featuring artwork for sale and/or auction by: Elena Mendez, Rosemarie Ramon, Harrison P. Preston,
Reclaiming the Border Narrative
October 25, 2023
Shifting entrenched narratives about the US-Mexico border might be a Herculean task … but listening to and supporting the many, diverse stories within and across the region is one way to begin. We worked with the Ford Foundation to document its philanthropic initiative supporting the gathering and sharing of such stories. Over three years, the
Seeking Traditional Artists for Loom Market Virtual Platform
April 26, 2023
We are so thrilled to share that Loom Market is up and running. We are currently seeking traditional artists to apply to the virtual platform and sell work online. Designed and maintained by the Southwest Folklife Alliance, Loom Market offers artists a virtual space to sell their artwork, expand their professional community, and access