• More than $2.7 million dollars of folk art was purchased in twenty-one hours! That is an increase of nearly 10%.
• Average booth sales were $18,916. Each artist takes home 90% of these sales.
• For most artists, that income represents 10 times more than they would earn in a year at home.
• Over 20,000 visitors gathered in celebration of folk art representing excellence and authenticity—a 7% increase over last year.
• The Market’s first publication, The Work of Art: Folk Artists in the 21st Century, by Carmella Padilla if you missed it, you can still get your copy online by clicking here or visiting www.folkartmarket.org/book.
• An estimated 5,000 people joined in welcoming artists at the Community Celebration at the Santa Fe Railyard! The artist procession, demonstrations, kite flying by Market artist Mikio Toki, and local food trucks were enjoyed by all. The evening’s free concert was outstanding, and our supporters danced the night away celebrating the Market’s 10th Anniversary.
• The Lensic hosted our Market week concert featuring the Festival au Desert: Caravan for Peace. The sold out audience was treated to music new to many. A highlight that evening was when Market artists Moussa Albaka and Elhadji Koumama danced onstage to the music of their culture.
• Though clouds loomed, the Market’s Opening Party was the best yet! The sold out event hosted 1,600 guests who dined on international cuisine and signature cocktails.
• The Market stage was incredible! Market goers were often seen swaying to the beat, circling around the dancing dragon, and clapping for more! Cuba’s TradiSon was welcomed back to the Market with huge crowds. It was impossible not to feel the rhythm.

If you happen to be in the Santa Fe Whole Foods Market on the evening of July 10th, don’t be surprised if you find yourself surrounded by dozens of master folk artists from around the Globe for the 10th Annual International Folk Art Market. The Market artists will be at the store selecting dinner ingredients, paid for by Gift Cards provided by Whole Foods Market. These Gift Cards are given to folk artists who take part in the International Folk Art Market’s ‘Mentor to Market’ (M2M) training program, which teaches Market artists business and marketing basics as a way to help empower the artists and support the growing artisan economy.

Artists from the International Folk Art Market end their day of Artist’s Training by visiting Santa Fe’s Whole Foods Market for a dinner of their choosing. The Santa Fe Whole Foods Market offers great international variety to choose from. Photo © Judith Cooper Haden

This year, the Market will play host to 190 master artists from 60 countries and draw an estimated 20,000 market goers, eager to see gorgeous folk art from every corner of the Earth. Some artists arrive as celebrated cultural icons, while others have never before left their villages, let alone boarded a plane. Many of them are women whose art gives them financial independence that would otherwise be unobtainable.

In the past nine years, 650 artists from 80 countries have participated in the Market—generating more than $16 million in sales, 90% of which goes directly to the artists, supporting their families and communities. Many of the artists come from developing countries, where the average income is less than $3 a day and where political, social, and environmental hardships can make everyday life – not to mention the creation of art -challenging. Past Market artists have gone home to build schools, houses, and wells for clean drinking water. As such, the International Folk Art Market has come to represent, in many ways, this bright spot in the world economy.

“Behind agriculture, artisan activity is the second largest employer in the developing world, often the primary means of income.” – US State Department

Since 2007, Whole Foods Market has provided both financial and in-kind support to the International Folk Art Market, including the Dinner Cards for Market artists and food for Market volunteers. Not only that, but Whole Foods Market is a co-sponsor of the popular Community Celebration at the Railyard on Thursday, July 11th. This free public event at the Santa Fe Railyard Park will feature the annual Artists Procession, with more than 100 of the 2013 Market artists—from close to 60 countries, all in colorful national dress—taking part. Audiences will dance the night away to two amazing groups as part of the extremely popular outdoor concert; the West African Highlife Band and South Africa’s legendary Ihashi Elimhlophe.

The annual artists procession is a popular event at the community event held Thursday evening of market week. Photo © Bob Smith. All rights reserved.

It’s shaping up to be amazing 10th Anniversary for the International Folk Art Market. Providing individuals and communities with the tools they need to empower themselves is a community endeavor, and the International Folk Art Market is proud to have the continuing support of Whole Foods Market.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, July 10th, 2013 at 10:54 pm and is filed under In the News.

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This entry was posted on Tuesday, July 9th, 2013 at 5:02 pm and is filed under Artists Spotlights, Videos.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, June 18th, 2013 at 7:52 pm and is filed under Artists Spotlights, Videos.

“The brute sound of weapons and the cries of intolerance are not able to silence the singing of the griots or the sound of the Imzad (violin) and the Tinde (drum).” – Caravan of Artists for Peace and National Unity

Since 2001, the musical celebration called Festival au Desert was held in Mali and was voted one of the top 25 festivals in the world.  But in 2012, immediately following the last festival, war broke out in the north of Mali and the 2013 festival was canceled.  Islamic militants took over the country and half a million people in northern Mali were forced to flee their homes.  In January and February of this year, France and Chad led an armed intervention, defeating the militants, but some remain, resulting in recent suicide bombings and continued attacks on urban areas.  The Mali army is in ruins and even if it were not, it has been accused of its own human rights violations and considered suspect by the Kel Tamashek (Tuareg) in the north, many of whom dream of independence from Mali. The country has announced its reconstruction plan and scheduled elections for July, but the road to peace in Mali remains unclear.

Hope for the region is embodied in Festival au Desert: Caravan for Peace Concert – a nomadic version of the Festival au Desert that has been touring Europe and will make its United States debut at the Lensic in Santa Fe on July 10, 2013 as the kick-off to the International Folk Art Market.  The original Festival au Desert was created as a cultural peace project – bringing together nomadic Saharan tribes from Algeria to Niger. It grew into a musical phenomenon attracting musicians like Robert Plant and Bono and attendees from around the world to Timbuktu – making it the top tourist attraction in Mali.

Some of the most mesmerizing and talented musicians to come out of the Festival au Desert will bring their message of peace, tolerance, and understanding to a worldwide audience gathered in Santa Fe for the International Folk Art Market. The concert line-up includes Mamadou Kelly, Tartit, and Imharhan.

Mamadou Kelly gained fame playing with Ali Farka Touré, one of Africa’s most internationally renowned musicians.  His music is a blend of Malian blues, nomadic Saharan sounds and electric guitar – providing a captivating combination of traditional and modern sounds.

Tartit consists of five women and four men, and through their traditional music, they seek to preserve a culture currently under attack. Once residing in the Timbuktu region of Mali, they are now refugees in Burkina Faso.  The group is led by Fadimata Walet Oumar, known as Disco. The women sit, sing and play tinde drums while the men accompany them on string instruments.

The women of Tartit have formed an association recognized by the United Nations that is not only dedicated to preserving their music and culture, but also develops educational and economic opportunities for women and children.  The Kel Tamashek society is one of the few in Africa where the women are allowed to have a voice and may choose whom they marry. The men are veiled, while the women are not.The tinde is played exclusively by women and is made from a wooden mortar used to grind grain and covered with goat skin. A soloist sings accompanied by a female chorus singing and clapping.

Tartit morphs into Imharhan. Embracing the 21st century and led by Disco’s brother, Mohamed Issa, the group adds electric instruments to the musical mix adding an element of contemporary experimentation to their desert blues.

This concert is presented by the International Folk Art Market and ¡Globalquerque! and made possible through a Lensic Community Sponsorship and support from World Women Work.

Tickets for Festival au Desert: Caravan for Peace Concert are on sale now at The Lensic box office, online, or by calling 505.988.1234.

This entry was posted on Monday, June 17th, 2013 at 7:03 pm and is filed under In the News.

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This entry was posted on Monday, May 13th, 2013 at 2:22 am and is filed under Artists Spotlights, Videos.

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This entry was posted on Monday, April 29th, 2013 at 3:34 pm and is filed under Artists Spotlights, Videos.

Folk art, with its deep expressions of cultures, values, and traditions, reflects experiences of communities and artists in an increasingly connected world.

A collaborative project between the Santa Fe International Folk Art Market and CCA, our 2013 film series presents the beauty, challenges and inspiration woven into folk art. Join us in a celebration of cinema that reflects traditional cultures from around the world.

The series is produced by the International Folk Art Market – Santa Fe, with films curated by Emmy-winning writer-producer Kirk Ellis (JOHN ADAMS) and CCA Cinematheque Director Jason Silverman.

April 17 • Opening Night Party! — Devi (The Goddess)

5:30 p.m.  Tickets: $20

“Ray’s feeling for the intoxicating beauty within the disintegrating way of life of the 19th-century landowning class makes this one of the rare, honest films about decadence.” –Pauline Kael

Celebrate Indian culture with appetizers and chai from India Palace, a traditional Indian dance performance, an inspirational video message from Market participant Reema Nanavaty of India’s Self Employed Women’s Association, and a rare screening of Satyajit Ray’s masterpiece. Devi follows the story of Kalikinkar, an aging patriarch who dreams that his daughter-in-law Doyamoyee is an incarnation of the goddess Kali. After Kalikinkar insists the villagers worship her, Doyamoyee miraculously heals a sick child. Believers line up, and Doyamoyee begins to believe in her own powers. Despite its anti-establishment message, the gorgeous, haunting Devi won the prestigious President’s Gold Medal in 1961. (India, 1960, 97m, digital video courtesy of Janus Films)

May 15 • The Story of Qiu Ju

7 p.m.  $12

“Mr. Zhang’s keen and universal view of human nature raises his work far above its own visual beauty and into the realm of timeless storytelling.” –New York Times

Zhang Yimou, China’s greatest living filmmaker, tells the story of a young village woman (the radiant Gong Li) living in traditional ways. After a local official insults her husband, she travels to the big city in search of justice, navigating the baffling modern world. Zhang has created one of the most striking films about the challenges of contemporary China, featuring a keen sense of its rhythms and landscapes and providing a miraculous balance of the absurd and the poignant. (China, 1992, 100m, 35mm print courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics)

June 12 • Central Station

7 p.m.  $12

“A richly tender and moving experience … Salles, like De Sica and Renoir, displays a pure and unpatronizing feel for the poetry of broken lives. His movie is really about that most everyday of miracles: the rebirth of hope.” –Entertainment Weekly

In Rio, the callous Dora (the legendary Fernanda Montenegro, nominated for an Oscar) writes letters for a parade of the poor and the illiterate. After hearing the story of a recently orphaned nine-year-old boy, she decides to take him on a search through the countryside for his father. In this Golden Globe-winning road movie, Walter Salles (MOTORCYCLE DIARIES, ON THE ROAD) shows us the peoples and cultures of Brazil—both traditional and modern—as you’ve never seen them, and celebrates our potential for rebirth. Followed by a pre-recorded Skype interview with director Walter Salles. (Brazil, 1998, 113m, 35mm print courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics)

All films will be shown at the CCA Cinematheque

Advance ticket purchases encouraged online, these shows are likely to sell out.
1050 Old Pecos Trail • 505.982.1338 • ccasantafe.org

This entry was posted on Monday, March 25th, 2013 at 5:07 pm and is filed under In the News.

Dr. Manuel Montoya, Ahdina Zunkel and Shawn McQueen-Ruggerio

What part does social enterprise play in the world economy? Folk Art Market Executive Director, Shawn McQueen-Ruggerio and Market Artist Development Director, Ahdina Zunkel participated as honored respondents at a talk by Ashoka Lemelson Fellow, Greg Van Kirk on this very topic.

The talk was presented by International Business Students Global (IBSG) and the UNM Anderson School of Management in conjunction with the announcement of IBGS partnering with Van Kirk’s organization, the Social Entrepreneur Corp. The Corp works with social entrepreneurs in developing countries – work closely aligned with that of the Market’s.

Greg Van Kirk, Ashoka Lemelson Fellow and founder of the Social Entrepreneur Corp.

What is social entrepreneurship? Van Kirk defined it this way:

•  when earning a living also helps the community
•  when business opportunities have social impact
•  when profitability leads to social impact and not just money
•  when the endeavor involves persistence, creativity, innovation and value

“It’s not about what we do, but what we set in motion,” said Van Kirk, “taking an empathetic approach to working with people.”

What has the Market set in motion and how has its programming contributed to the advancement of social entrepreneurship?

• More than 650 Master artisans have participated in our Market
• 1.23 million lives have been impacted by the Market opportunity
• Over 10 years, artists sales exceeded $16 million, 90% went home with the artists and their organizations

In addition, the Market is working on its teaching model which focuses on business and marketing workshops for folk artists each year. Mentor to Market is a peer-to-peer knowledge exchange that not only brings professionals in the field to mentor the artists, but also allows the artists to mentor each other. For example, if a cooperative in Bolivia is struggling to find a way to manage their money, the Market could share what it knows about money management – but it prefers to connect them with a cooperative leader in Peru that has a successful model.

The Market’s participation in the UNM event is not the first collaboration between the two entities. In 2012, Dr. Manuel Montoya of the UNM Anderson School of Management and a group of philosophy and business students (members of The Poetics Project) conducted a study to identify factors contributing to the Market’s sustainability and success as an NGO.
Dr. Montoya says the students wanted to go beyond the typical study of an organization’s success. The students looked at profit and the ability of the Market to organize artists, but they also examined the significance of the event itself and the cultural phenomena it presents. The students tried to understand the Market as an educational institution – its curriculum, pedagogy, engagement and how the organization treats folk art. Dr. Montoya says that this is what sets the Folk Art Market apart.

“They (the Market) are tacitly aware of the great tension in the 21st century. What has been produced as a result of mass production, and what has been preserved by valuing what has been done by hand. As a community, they provide values and leadership in understanding those values, “ says Montoya. “There are very few other institutions who understand at that level what is going on.”

The Market looks forward to a continuing relationship with the UNM Anderson School of Management, International Business Students Global and the students involved in the Poetics Project.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, March 20th, 2013 at 10:50 pm and is filed under Uncategorized.

International Women’s Day has been observed since the early 1900s. Today it is a day to celebrate and honor the work of women who have raised their voices to fight oppression and who have given of their talents to make the world a better and equal place for all.   Although great strides have been made, there is more work to be done to bring economic, social and political equality to women around the world.

One way to do this is through economic empowerment. No one knows this better than Rebecca Lolosoli, a Folk Art Market artist and matriarch of the Umoja Uaso Women’s Village in Kenya.  The Village is a safe haven for women and girls fleeing abuse. The women not only provide for their children and themselves by selling their beaded jewelry, but also share resources including a disability fund, community center, and school.  Rebecca is one of many women making a difference and whose stories are told by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalists Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn in the book Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide – now a documentary film.

The film was shot in 10 countries: Cambodia, Kenya, India, Sierra Leone, Somaliland, Vietnam, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Liberia and the United States and features reporter Nicholas Kristof as well as celebrity advocates like America Ferrera and Oliva Wilde.

The Market has teamed up with The Lensic Performing Arts Center and New Mexico PBS to present a segment of Half the Sky on March 7, 2013, that includes Rebecca Lolosoli.  The screening will be followed by a panel presentation moderated by Ali MacGraw, featuring New Mexico women who are making a difference locally and worldwide.

For more information on the event please visit www.folkartmarket.org/halfthesky.

In addition, you have a chance to submit your questions for the panel via Facebook and Twitter. Send us a your question as a comment on Facebook or to @sffolkartmarket using the hashtag #IFAMpanel and Ali MacGraw may use your question the night of the event.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, February 20th, 2013 at 10:32 pm and is filed under Uncategorized.

This entry was posted on Friday, February 15th, 2013 at 8:22 pm and is filed under Artists Spotlights, Videos.

Members of the Market community attended the formal launch of the Alliance for Artisan Enterprise at the U.S. Department of State, hosted by and in partnership with The Aspen Institute in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday, November 27, 2012.

As a founding member of the Alliance, the Market proudly joined with our fellow 22 founders and global stakeholders to announce the launch of this important, new public-private sector led alliance designed to support and grow artisan enterprise, improve livelihoods, sustain craft communities, preserve cultural heritage and contribute to sustainable economic and social development.

Over the last six months, we have been privileged to be involved with the initial planning and launch of the Alliance. Members of the State Department’s Office of Women’s Global Issues traveled to Santa Fe for the 2012 International Folk Art Market to meet with our staff, observe our Artist Training Programs, visit with artisans and learn more about our ten years of work with folk artists from around the world.  Joining the Alliance as a founding member was a natural extension of our mission to provide opportunities for folk artists to succeed in the global marketplace.

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This entry was posted on Tuesday, January 29th, 2013 at 6:49 pm and is filed under In the News.

Shawn McQueen-Ruggeiro, IFAM Executive Director

The International Folk Art Market begins a new chapter in its 10th Anniversary year with a new Executive Director, Shawn McQueen-Ruggeiro.

Shawn joins us in Santa Fe from San Diego, California where, for the past eight years, she has worked with Project Concern International (PCI), a leading health and development organization. Her passion for art and her experience working in the developing world led her here, to the International Folk Art Market.

While at PCI, Shawn launched “Women Empowered”, a savings-based empowerment program designed to help the most vulnerable women in the world. She also led the organization’s re-branding effort and its 50th Anniversary celebration.  She recruited an impressive list of collaborators and influential supporters for PCI including: famed Peruvian economist Fernando de Soto; Kenneth Kaunda, the first democratically elected president of Zambia; Kenyan activist Wahu Kaara; musician and activist Bonnie Raitt; Zimbabwean international recording star Oliver Mtukudzi; and Mohammed Yunus.

Shawn finds inspiration in the incredible people she has met while working in the developing world – like William Kamkwamba. William created a windmill made out of found objects on his farm in Malawi and wrote the book, The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind.   Her proudest accomplishments have been the life-long friendships she has forged with beneficiaries like Tobias Tembo – a former street child from Zambia and now a graduate of the University of Zambia – and Pintuk Jha, the first graduate from PCI’s shelter home, who is now a student at a technical college in Delhi, India.

Shawn was born and raised in Santa Barbara, California and is an alumna of the University of California – Santa Barbara where she earned a bachelor of arts in history with a Latin American emphasis and a certificate in Global Peace and Security. She also holds a certificate in fundraising from UCLA. She began her career with the American Red Cross as a field representative in South Central Los Angeles and served as the public information officer and shelter manager during the civil unrest following the Rodney King beatings.  From there she went on to a fundraising positions with White Memorial Medical Center, the Hugh O’Brian Youth Foundation and the Ocean Institute.

A self-described sufferer of “wanderlust”, Shawn continues to travel with her young family.  In fact, she’s been known to empty her suitcases to make room for folk art and other treasures found during her travels.  Her husband and two daughters will be following her here to New Mexico on her next big adventure. We hope you’ll join us in welcoming them to Santa Fe!

This entry was posted on Monday, January 14th, 2013 at 3:59 pm and is filed under In the News, Meet the Staff and Volunteers.

Janet Nkubana. Photo by Harvey Morgan II

Janet Nkubana is grateful. The co-founder of Gahaya Links in Rwanda, a group of women artisans whose basket-weaving has provided vital income for them following the Rwandan genocide of 1994, deserves gratitude herself from many people. But she’s clear that the International Folk Art Market has been instrumental in this amazing story of recovery and empowerment.

She puts it like this: “Thank you for being a beacon of hope to many of us, your support has touched so many lives in our country and has restored our dignity and values.”

Rwandan women have for centuries passed on to their daughters the skills to weave baskets using a variety of organic reeds and grasses, and carrying designs with longstanding cultural meanings.

Following the genocide, Gahaya Links was founded as a way of turning Rwanda’s ancient basket weaving tradition into a source of livelihood for the rural women who found themselves without any means of support.

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This entry was posted on Tuesday, December 4th, 2012 at 9:37 pm and is filed under Artists Spotlights.

Orijyn artisan, Bandith Ladpakdy

Having a sense of belonging and community is something for which we all can be thankful. For the artisans of Orijyn and the Saoban cooperative in Laos, the Market provides a community that spans the globe.  From the inspiration provided by a network of fellow artisans, to the tireless determination of Market staff and volunteers, to the positive reinforcement from enthusiastic Market patrons – Orijyn’s artisans find strength, belonging, pride and a shared appreciation of the importance of handicrafts in sustaining culture and tradition. It’s the people in the Market community for whom they are the most thankful.

“Since our acceptance into the show, the Santa Fe Folk Art Market has been a blessing,” says Mark Sloneker of Orijyn. “It was not just the great sales, though the sales have been very helpful in building revenue. It’s the network that has long-term value.”

Orijyn first brought its exquisite silver jewelry from Laos to the Market in 2009.  Orijyn works with PADETC, a non-profit school in Laos that houses Saoban, a silversmith cooperative working to preserve traditional art forms by teaching a younger generation and providing education and healthcare to artisans.

Sloneker says the Market community has raised the credibility level of Orijyn’s artisans and increased the confidence of prospective wholesalers in the cooperative’s ability to develop and maintain professional business relationships. The increase in revenue from direct sales at the Market, twenty new wholesale relationships, catalog and online sales with National Geographic and two large orders from QVC have had a direct impact on the lives of artisans and their families in Laos.

The new revenue has enabled Orijyn to train new staff and add 50+ artisans to the Saoban silversmith group.  Its new microloan program is providing supplies to artisans that cannot afford to make the initial investment in materials.  Programs to teach accounting and co-op development, as well as basic healthcare have all increased.  It has opened a store in Vientiane to capture the tourist trade and develop the Saoban brand. Sloneker is proud to report that the store is both self-sustaining and generating new wholesale customers from around the world.

Students and artisans with the Saoban handcraft division of the PADETC

The Saoban handcraft division is leading the way for the other divisions within PADETC – becoming a profit center and a model for supply chain development, branding and marketing.  The managers are now teaching other Lao entrepreneurs how to build and sustain a business.  Orijyn and Saoban are reaching their goals through the support and assistance of the Market community.

“We now have lifelong friends around the world,” says Sloneker. “We share our experiences and trials, and offer each other support and ideas to improve the work we do. We don’t feel alone in our endeavors”.

Without a doubt, a community to be thankful for.

This entry was posted on Sunday, November 18th, 2012 at 9:06 pm and is filed under Artists Spotlights.

Josnel Bruno

Josnel Bruno, from Croix-des-Bouquets in Haiti, makes beautiful recycled oil drum bowls and platters, and 2012 was the first year in which his work was available at the Market.

Visa problems meant Josnel himself was unable to attend, but the impact on his life from the sale of his work at the Market has been profound.

Financial support from the Market and sponsorship from HAND/EYE Fund, covered the cost of his booth and longtime friend and supporter of Haitian artists Susan Tselos worked at the booth on his behalf.

Keth Recker of HAND/EYE (and Market Board Member) says, “HAND/EYE Fund’s roots in Haiti are deep. We published an entire issue of HAND/EYE Magazine focused on the art, craft, design and spiritual traditions of Haiti. We have operated, with funding from the Clinton Bush Haiti Fund, an artisan development program called the Artisan Business Network. And we have had a strong artisan grants program since 2010.

“Among the grants we are most proud of are our sponsorships of artists headed to the Santa Fe International Folk Art Market. Included in this group are bead-and-sequin artist Mireille Delisme and metalworker Josnel Bruno.”

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This entry was posted on Monday, October 29th, 2012 at 4:09 pm and is filed under Artists Spotlights.

Naema Birala. Photo: © Bob Smith

Moroccan jewelry maker Naema Birali from the co-operative  Artisanat des Femmes de Khenifra was a first-time attendee at the Market this year. The co-operative has been working with Marcia Newlands from the Peace Corps to reflect on their experiences in Santa Fe, and plan for the best use of the money they earned.

The women of the co-operative shared their earnings based on the sales of each of their items, and they put 30% of their money back into the co-operative. Marcia explains, “They will also use some of the money to buy supplies to make more jewelry.  However, they feel that they can now look to making some sort of difference in the community if they are invited back, and are discussing possible activities.  One thing they want to do is to teach other young women the art of making the jewelry.  They also want to study English and several of them are joining together to pay a teacher to help them.”

The money the women took home will go to help with day-to-day expenses, such as school supplies and clothes for their children, or perhaps buying a refrigerator for their homes, or a fan to help with the heat (it averages 110 degrees and higher for at least three months every summer). Read the rest of this entry »