Folk art

Folk art, predominantly functional or utilitarian visual art created by hand (or with limited mechanical facilities) for use by the maker or a small circumscribed group and containing an element of retention—the prolonged survival of tradition. Folk art is the creative expression of the human struggle toward civilization within a particular environment through the production of useful but aesthetic buildings and objects.

This article focuses on the usual sense of the term folk art—that is, on the visual arts. For folk art in the broader sense, see also folk dance; folk music; folklore; folk literature.

In the broadest sense, folk art refers to the art of the people, as distinguished from the elite or professional product that constitutes the mainstream of art in highly developed societies. The term in this comprehensive context combines some quite disparate categories of art; therefore, as a workable field of art-historical study, folk art is generally treated separately from certain other kinds of peoples’ arts, notably the “primitive” (defined as the work of prehistoric and preliterate peoples). Historically, the terms folk and popular have been used interchangeably in the art field, the former being specific in English and German (Volkskunst), the latter in the Romance languages (populaire, popolare); the term folk, however, has increasingly been adopted in the various languages, both Western and Oriental, to designate the category under discussion here. The term popular art is widely used to denote items commercially or mass-produced to meet popular taste, a process distinguished from the manner of the folk artist, as defined above. The distinction between folk and popular art is not absolute, however: some widely collected folk art, such as the chalkwares (painted plaster ornamental figures) common in America and the popular prints turned out for wide distribution, may be seen as the genesis of popular art; and the products and motifs long established in folk art have provided a natural source for the popular field.

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Although the definition of folk art is not yet firm, it may be considered as the art created among groups that exist within the framework of a developed society but, for geographic or cultural reasons, are largely separated from the cosmopolitan artistic developments of their time and that produce distinctive styles and objects for local needs and tastes. The output of such art represents a unique complex of primitive impulses and traditional practices subjected both to sophisticated influences and to highly local developments; aside from aesthetic considerations, the study of folk art is particularly revealing in regard to the relationship between art and culture.

As industry, commerce, and transportation begin to offer all people free access to the latest ideas and products, a true folk art tends to disappear; the integrity and tradition that formed its inherent character decline, and the heritage of home-produced products is undervalued for the very qualities that made it distinctive. Subsequent revivals, extensively sponsored by organizations, craft groups, governments, or commercial enterprises, are no longer the same thing.

The recognition of folk art as a special category came about during the late 19th century and was at first limited to the so-called peasant art of Europe, the “art of the land.” The new intellectual climate of the time, with a romantic value attached to the simple life and the “folk soul” and the increasing spread of democratic or nationalistic ideas, brought the art of the common people into focus. It was recognized that their simple tools, utensils, and crafts had aesthetic aspects. Before industrialization, such folk art was widespread throughout Europe, exhibiting almost everywhere local styles created by people who had no access to the products of the wealthy and who were engaged largely in agricultural, pastoral, or maritime pursuits. As sophistication advanced, localism began to break down along major routes, but the folk arts continued on the periphery, particularly in geographically isolated regions, where they had an opportunity not only to survive but also to elaborate.

Having only limited contact with the outside world, the inhabitants preserved their traditions, art forms, and methods of workmanship over a long period and, at the same time, had to rely on their own invention to create new styles and products at need. These outstanding regional arts provide a well-defined core of material in the field of folk art.

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As the early colonists immigrated to remote parts of the world, they, too, were isolated from the cultural developments of the homeland and forced to rely on their own skills for most of their products. The arts they took with them were transformed, and new arts emerged under the stimulus of a different environment and through contact with native cultures; the notable folk arts of the Americas were one result.

In time, it was recognized that the great Asian civilizations, like those of Europe, also had two distinct forms of art—the elitist and the folk. As Asian folk art scholarship developed, the subject gained international footing.

While most scholars agree that a folk type of art has occurred at some time in many parts of the world (and may yet appear in newly developing countries), there are various areas in which such art has so far been ignored or has not been studied as a separate category. For instance, with the notable exception of Roman folk art, the folk distinction is not usually applied to the art of ancient civilizations nor to Islamic or Western medieval art. The summary provided here is, therefore, necessarily concentrated on the more studied areas: European folk art of the 17th–19th centuries, colonial and postcolonial folk arts, and the folk art of certain major Eastern countries. In addition to the major folk regions, this article will deal with the categories, styles, content, and motifs of folk art.