Saturday, March 21, 2015

Come play! 16th annual Sharing Our Cultures event this Sunday




You are invited to Sharing Our Cultures, a fun-filled family event, at The Rooms, Sunday March 22, at 2-4 pm. Learn to play Shadow Puppets from China, Ludo from India, La Rana from Colombia, and many other games from around the world. Interact with school youth from diverse cultural backgrounds residing in St. John's and learn about their cultures. Admission to Sharing Our Cultures is FREE (fees apply for The Rooms exhibits). Contact Dr. Lloydetta Quaicoe at lloydetta@sharingourcultures.com or www.sharingourcultures.com.

Friday, March 20, 2015

Rescuing a stranded sailor, or breaking a neighbour's window: World Storytelling Day #WorldStory15

World Storytelling Day. Logo by Mats Rehnman.

At ICH, we're in the business of stories.

When it comes right down to it, stories are what many of us value the most. When we walk into a centuries-old home, we think "If these walls could talk, what stories would they tell?" Our most cherished moments are remembered as stories.

The best thing about stories is that they multiply in value when shared. It's fun to tell a story, and fun to hear one. Storytelling has been around since humans came up with language.

Today is World Storytelling Day, an global celebration of the art of oral storytelling, recognized every year on the spring equinox in the northern hemisphere. You can read more about it here.

In honour of this day, I want to share my very first oral history interview ever, and the first interview in the Hoist your Sails and Run project (available on the DAI here). I spoke with Winston Fiander, from Portugal Cove-St. Philips, over Skype, and amid descriptions of games he used to play, he told me a couple of particularly notable stories.

To hear how his father rescued a stranded fisherman, go to 15:28.

To hear how he got up to mischief with a homemade slingshot and got away with it, go to 28:10.

And don't forget to check out Looking Back; Games We Played - the published result of the Hoist your Sails and Run project - set to launch Tuesday, March 24th.

Wednesday, March 18, 2015

"A rising tide lifts all boats" - Living with heritage in Bonavista



Notice - Annual General Meeting – Newfoundland and Labrador Historic Trust

Thursday March 19, 2015, 7 - 9pm
The Plantation, Quidi Vidi Village, St. John's, NL

Parking is limited so carpooling is recommended. New members welcome
Light refreshments will be served

Following the meeting there will be a special presentation by John Norman:

BONAVISTA LIVING / BONAVISTA CREATIVE: 'A RISING TIDE LIFTS ALL BOATS'

John Norman grew up in the historic community of Bonavista. During his university years, Norman purchased various pieces of vacant land and historic properties throughout Bonavista, which he believed were worth preserving. In 2014, blending formal education and professional work with a passion for built heritage, Norman (with Mark and Chantal Dickson) founded a new group of companies: Bonavista Living; Bonavista Creative; and Bonavista Creative Workshop.

The companies’ core principles are to restore and preserve the existing built heritage of Bonavista, systematically protecting and capitalizing upon its heritage resources, while creating a more livable community for all. They intend to restore numerous residential heritage properties, while fostering and promoting new and unique businesses that will contribute to the local economy, thereby enhancing the community.

Mr. Norman’s presentation will discuss the various ways in which his group of companies is making an impact in the region.

Looking Back; Games We Played: new booklet to launch March 24



Memorial University’s Folklore department has teamed up with the Heritage Foundation of Newfoundland and Labrador to launch Looking Back; Games We Played, a booklet exploring the childhood games of Newfoundland’s past.

Folklore graduate students spent the month of February with seniors at the MacMorran Community Centre to discuss the games they played as children, and to partake in a few of those games together. During the weekly gatherings at the community centre, the games remembered ranged from the classic Hide and Go Seek, to Cat’s Cradle, to sliding on pieces of wooden barrels or car bonnets in the winter months.

Looking Back; Games We Played documents the interviews and memories of childhood play that the students collected. The booklet will launch at the MacMorran Community Centre at 10am on March 24th, 2015. Refreshments will be available and there will be games to be played!

This project has been funded by the Government of Canada's New Horizons for Seniors Program.
For more information, please contact:
Andrea McGuire
(709) 771-2216
andrea.mcguire@hotmail.com

Monday, March 16, 2015

Reframing and Extending Tradition: Intangible Cultural Heritage and Public Folklore in Newfoundland and Labrador




Last year, I was asked to write an article on the role of brokers and mediators in enacting Newfoundland and Labrador's Intangible Cultural Heritage Strategy. That article was included in a special edition of the folklore journal Volkskunde, which has now been released online.

My article outlines three approaches where ICH safeguarding strategies in Newfoundland and Labrador utilize guided facilitation by professional folklorists: community-based training initiatives; safeguarding ICH within heritage districts; and, the development of public programs as part of folklife festivals.

You can download and view the article in pdf format here.

Or you can download the entire journal here.

Sunday, March 15, 2015

Taking in Strangers - Quebec and Newfoundland Stories with Louise Moyes



TAKING IN STRANGERS - Quebec and Newfoundland Stories

MARCH 17-21, 2015 @ 8pm at the LSPU HALL
Call the Hall 753-4531 or Book online at rca.nf.ca
Tickets $28/ $22 seniors, students, artists, groups of 5+

On the road from Montreal to St. John's via ‘forgotten coasts’, Louise Moyes finds threads of Newfoundland and Quebec, home and the road, deceptions and truth. Kept company by a ‘bag lady’ beloved by many, Louise weaves "a bit of history and a lot of humanity" (The Telegram) in this one-woman tour de force.

"A series of priceless gifts...a delicate blend of movement, monologue, music and sound. A great evening of entertainment." (The Telegram)

Taking in Strangers is based on interviews with residents of the isolated south coast in Newfoundland and the Lower North Shore of Quebec (into Labrador), by way of Montreal and St. John's.

An updated version of a show that sold-out at the LSPU Hall 15 years ago (and has since been performed in Quebec, Vancouver, Germany, and Brazil and toured NL schools), Taking in Strangers reflects on themes of rural development, homelessness and mental health, woven through funny and moving stories on everything from quitting smoking and how to have fun in an ice storm, to the tragedy of losing one's child . The beloved 'bag lady', the proud and beautiful Marilyn (Trixie), accompanies Louise throughout this story of their 15 years on the road between St. John's and Montreal.

On Tuesday March 17, stay for the artists and rural community developers panel: Anne Troake, Tom Gordon, John Fisher, moderated by Michael Clair, with the theme: Re-imagining Rural NL: “Making our rural communities viable into a bright and vibrant future.”  Co-sponsored by Municipalities Newfoundland and Labrador

Thursday, March 12, 2015

Well done, Mr. Ackerman - a cherished memory from Cupids

On Tuesday, Peter Laracy took some time out to talk to us about having fun when he was a kid. Here he is at the beautiful Cupids Legacy Centre, telling us a story about getting from his home in Cupids to Harbour Grace to play on the hockey team.



Peter's interview was part of the Hoist your Sails and Run project about traditional Newfoundland and Labrador play and games. If you're interested in knowing more about this project, please give me a call at 739-1892 ext 3 or email me here.

Tuesday, March 10, 2015

Our Multicultural Province - An Engaging Evening at The Rooms, 7pm March 11th




Our Multicultural Province
The Rooms
9 Bonaventure Avenue
St. John's, NL
7pm, Wednesday, March 11th, 2015
Free event.

Did you know that Newfoundland and Labrador has a growing multicultural community? Immigrants have brought diversity and the opportunity to experience other cultures, their food, their music, and their art. Come hear the stories and challenges of people who have chosen to make this province their home.

Presented by The Rooms in collaboration with the Heritage Foundation of Newfoundland and Labrador.
Folklorist Dale Jarvis will introduce you to three talented and engaged people making a home in St. John's: Zainab Jerrett, Hadi Milanloo, and Hazel Ouano Alpuerto. Come have a chat, and learn more about our growing and changing community.

Zainab Jerrett is the Executive Director of Tombolo Multicultural Festival Newfoundland and Labrador Inc. She is also the owner of two businesses: Multi Ethnic Food Kitchen; and the annual International Food and Craft Expo shows in St. John's, CBS, and Paradise. Zainab is originally from Nigeria but immigrated to Canada in 1992 to do PhD in Folklore at Memorial University of Newfoundland. She obtained her PhD in Folklore at MUN in 1998. She has been married to a lovely Newfoundlander from 2000 to the present.

Hadi Milanloo was born in the north of Iran, in a family for whom music was of great importance. He started to play the setar when he was 13. Having finished a BMus and an M.A at the University of Tehran, he and his wife, Saeedeh, moved to St. John's in December 2013 in order to pursue their studies at Memorial University. Saeedeh studies Folklore and Hadi is in the Ethnomusicology programme.

Hazel Ouano Alpuerto is a Filipino-Canadian living here in St.John's. She is a Psychiatric Registered Nurse by profession and is working with Eastern Health. She is also the Philippine Honorary Consul General, whose role is to oversee fellow nationals requiring assistance.

Photo of Zainab Jerrett by Martin Connelly/The Scope.

Monday, March 9, 2015

Young Heritage Professionals Panel - audio podcast #YHF2015



We are still abuzz here at the Intangible Cultural Heritage office after the wonderfully successful Youth Heritage Forum 2015 held this past Saturday at The Lantern here in St. John’s.

One of the highlights was the young heritage professionals panel. Six talented and inspiring young women spoke about their work in the heritage sector, and then took questions from moderator Alanna Wicks and the assembled crowd.

You can download the full, unedited audio of the panel as an MP3 here or visit archive.org for other audio formats.




Bios of the presenters in the order of speaking:

Crystal Braye - Crystal received her Bachelor of Arts in Cultural Anthropology from Wilfrid Laurier University in 2008 before completing her Masters of Arts in Folklore at MUN. During her time at MUN, Crystal’s work focused on documenting root cellars for the Heritage Foundation of Newfoundland and Labrador, with additional research on Newfoundland’s “Screech-In” customs and mummering traditions. She is presently on the board of directors for the Mummers Festival and has been working as a folklorist for the Wooden Boat Museum of Newfoundland and Labrador since 2012.
Follow The Wooden Boat Museum on Twitter @WoodenBoatNL

Nicole Penney BA, MA. - Nicole is a folklorist and archivist living and working in St. John’s, Newfoundland. She has been working within the heritage community since 2004 and holds a BA in Folklore / English Literature and an MA in Public Folklore from MUN. Nicole currently works full time at the MUN Medical Founders' Archive, part-time on The Rooms reference desk and sits as vice president and education committee chair on the Association of Newfoundland and Labrador Archives board of directors. She is a strong advocate of community-level projects and inter-generational activities and regularly assists with educational activities that combine art and archives.
Follow Nicole on Twitter @AuntTriffie

Katherine Harvey - Katie is a folklorist whose primary interest is Museology. Since beginning her career in the heritage sector in 2009, she has worked in a variety of capacities with the Cupids Legacy Centre,The Rooms Provincial Museum, The Museum of Logy Bay-Middle Cove-Outer Cove and The Railway Coastal Museum. She obtained her B.A. in Folklore from Memorial University in 2014, and has plans to return to complete her M.A. in Folklore.
Follow Katherine on Twitter @katieaharvey

Aimee Chaulk - Aimee is the editor of Them Days magazine, an oral history quarterly about Labrador, and the de-facto archivist at Them Days Archives. She received her Hon.B.A. from the University of Toronto, in English and Mediaeval Studies. She also attended Ryerson University’s Magazine Publishing program. Aimee is on the ANLA Executive, is a co-founder of the Tamarack Camera Club, and organizes community events in her spare time. You may have seen her breastfeeding and canoeing at the same time in Metrobus shelter ads.
Follow Aimee on Twitter @themdays

Dr. Lisa M. Daly - Lisa has been working in the heritage sector since 2001, first with the Provincial Archives of Newfoundland and Labrador, then Parks Canada, and now as a tour guide, both independent and with Wildland Tours. She holds a B.A. in archaeology from MUN, a M.Sc. in forensic and biological anthropology from Bournemouth University, and has just completed a Ph.D. in archaeology at MUN. Her study focus is aviation in Newfoundland and Labrador. Up to now, most of her academic work has focused on World War II aviation in Gander, Goose Bay and Stephenville, but she has also done some work on pre- and post-war aviation history in the province. She is also collecting stories and images of the Hindenburg as it flew over Newfoundland.
Follow her work on Twitter @planecrashgirl or her blog, www.planecrashgirl.ca.

Caitlyn Baikie - Caitlyn is from the province's most northern community of Nain, and has been living in the capital studying Geography and Aboriginal Studies at Memorial University for the past four years. With experience in both the Arctic and Antarctic, she has been participating in climate research for nearly a decade and has been attempting to communicate the effects it has on Inuit culture. An avid volunteer, lover of chocolate, political junkie, and a curious mind for the world we live in Caitlyn thoroughly enjoys exploring her own history as an Inuk and sharing it with those who are willing to share a bit about their own history.
Follow Caitlyn on Twitter @CaitlynBaikie