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Jean Laney Harris Folk Heritage Awards

 

The South Carolina Arts Commission and McKissick Museum at the University of South Carolina announce the 2013 Jean Laney Harris Folk Heritage Award recipients:

 

• John Thomas Fowler
  Master Musician, Performer and Storyteller
• R. Stanley Woodward
  Advocacy –Documentary Film Maker

 

The S.C. State Legislature will present the awards upon adjournment in the House Chamber, midday on May 2 at the Statehouse.

 

Fowler, of Boiling Springs, is being honored as a master musician, performer and storyteller. For more than 30 years, he has worked to keep Appalachian culture alive by sharing the music traditions and stories of his heritage. Woodward, a documentary film maker from Greenville, is being honored for 40 years of advocating for and bringing recognition to South Carolina folk artists and traditions, particularly those associated with foodways and music.

 

Following the Statehouse ceremony, a reception will be held at the Capstone House on the campus of the University of South Carolina.  This informal event gives supporters and the general public an opportunity to celebrate the recipients’ artistic skills and lifetime commitment to the preservation and promotion of traditions rooted in place and community.  The reception will take place in the Capstone Campus Room on the first floor. 

 

The Folk Heritage Award is named for the late Jean Laney Harris, an ardent supporter of the state's cultural heritage. The award was created by the legislature in 1987 to recognize lifetime achievement in the folk arts. The artistic traditions represented by the award are significant because they have endured, often for hundreds of years.