Stories All Around Us - The International Folk Festival in Santa Fe

I visited the International Folk Festival in Santa Fe, New Mexico this weekend (July 13-14). One-hundred and fifty artisans from over fifty countries converged on Museum Hill. There were textiles, jewelry, clothing, pottery and more.

The group above is Ihhashi Elimhlophe performing Zulu music from South Africa. They did enough gymnastics onstage to qualify for the Olympics. They were amazing. They're even on Facebook (though I can't seem to find them now:)

The man above is creating a yarn painting. He starts with a thin piece of ply board, covers it in beeswax, then uses a metal stylus to poke the yarn into the wood to create a variety of designs. Each one has a symbolic meaning. His son described the process and also told me about their tribe in Mexico. They pre-dated the Aztecs and were one of the last of the indigenous groups to hold out against the Spaniards.

Every piece of art at the entire festival held a story. so did the fascinating people who created it.