The signature folklife festival will feature quilting traditions from across the state, music, and traditional crafts.
FOLKFabulous@theFair returns to celebrate another year of traditional crafts, art, and music from the Palmetto state. This year, our signature folklife festival celebrates South Carolina’s rich textile arts heritage, including Native American, African American, and Mennonite quilting traditions, in conjunction with the current exhibition Piece by Piece: Quilts from the Permanent Collection.
You’re invited to participate and engage with artists and cultural traditions that make Carolina home! Come to the Rosewoods Building to enjoy arts displays, demonstrations and hands-on craft activities, concerts and participatory music experiences. You won’t want to miss the chance to make a story quilt block, participate in our yarn-bombing display, weave a basket or create a quilt for a veteran with Quilts of Valor. You’ll also find music to move your heart and dancing feet, including a Harvest Dance with old-time music by the Carolina Relics, a bluegrass concert by the Carolina Rebels, Piedmont Blues with Michael King and Freddie Vanderford, and Gullah music and storytelling by internationally renowned performers Ron and Natalie Daise. FOLKFabulous@theFair also celebrates McKissick Museum’s Folklife & Traditional Arts Program, in partnership with the SC Arts Commission, by presenting the Jean Laney Folk Heritage Award and Traditional Arts Apprenticeship Initiative grant recipients.
Don’t forget to stop by McKissick Museum to view the exhibition that inspired this year’s festival: Piece by Piece: Quilts from the Permanent Collection. McKissick Museum is free and open to the public from 8:30am – 5:00pm Monday through Friday, 11:00am – 3:00pm Saturdays. FOLKFabulous@theFair is made possible with generous support from the South Carolina State Fair, National Endowment for the Humanities, National Endowment for the Arts, the South Carolina Arts Commission, and the Quilters of South Carolina.
The following is the full schedule of events for FOLKFabulous@theFair. All programs and events listed below are free with admission to the South Carolina State Fair and inside the Rosewoods Building unless otherwise noted. These details can also be found on McKissick Museum’s Facebook page.
Daily Activities –
South Carolina Quilts: Then & Now – Learn about quilting techniques, traditions, and cultural significance in this exhibit by Guest Curator Cookie Washington.
Oral History Listening Booth – Fair visitors share memories of food, rides, exhibits and more in oral histories celebrating the 150th Anniversary of the South Carolina State Fair. Co-curator by Indie Grits Labs.
Wednesday – October 9th – 12pm to 6pm
12-6pm: Create your own red, white and blue quilt block with Quilts of Valor. Blocks created will be used for one of their quilts for veterans.
12-6pm: Join the stitching circle! The Yarn Bombers of Columbia host an open stitching circle and speak about their work. Stitch your own creation and add to the display.
Thursday – October 10th – 12pm to 6pm
12-6pm: Design a mini fabric mosaic with Guest Curator Cookie Washington.
12-6pm: Create your own red, white and blue quilt block with Quilts of Valor. Blocks created will be used for one of their quilts for veterans.
Friday – October 11th – 11am to 8:30pm
11-6pm: Join Project Freestyle as they explore upcycling techniques and share their mission of working with survivors of trafficking in India and South Carolina.
11-6pm: Explore traditional Indian folk art with artist Jugnu Verma. Try your hand at decorating your own diya pot and rangoli.
7-8:30pm: Find your own rhythm with the Columbia Community Drum Circle. Drums Provided.
Saturday – October 12th – 11am to 10pm
11am-6pm: Explore the Mennonite quilting tradition with Lill Stoltzfus and an interactive hand quilting activity.
2:30-3:30pm: Carolina Rebels Concert, Pepsi Place Stage.
6:30-10pm: Contra dance with old-time music by Andy Brooks and the Carolina Relics. *Beginners lessons at 6:30pm and 8:00pm*
Sunday – October 13th – 1pm to 5pm
1-5pm: Join award-winning quilter Peggie Hartwell and learn how to make your own fabric story block, exploring the use of color and design to find your “voice on cloth”.
2:30-3:30pm: Gullah Storytellers Ron and Natalie Daise perform Dream Weaving, South Gate Stage.
Monday – October 14th – 11am to 6pm
11-6pm: How do we use what we already have? Learn how to repurpose/upcycle with Flavia Lovatelli.
11-6pm: Make plarn with the Columbia Yarn Bombers, which they use to make sleeping mats for the homeless.
Tuesday – October 15th – 11am to 6pm
11-6pm: The Quilters of South Carolina teach how to craft nine-patch squares, the first quilt patter traditionally learned by children. Take your square home to finish or contribute to our community quilt.
Wednesday – October 16th – 12pm to 6pm
12-2pm: Concert and community sing-along with Traditional Arts Apprenticeship participants Claudia Williams and Naomi Samuel.
2:30-6pm: Hand quilt with the Henhouse Ministry quilters.
Thursday – October 17th – 11am to 6pm
11-6pm: Design your very own quilt square with quilter Anita Bowen. No sewing required!
Friday – October 18th – 11am to 6pm
11-6pm: The Greater Columbia Quilters teach how to craft nine-patch squares, the first quilt patter traditionally learned by children. Take your square home to finish or contribute to our community quilt.
3-4pm: “Cruise through the Blues” concert with Michael King and Freddie Vanderford, Pepsi Place Stage.
4:30-5:30pm: Join us for a chat about the unique style of the Piedmont Blues with Michael King and Freddie Vanderford.
Saturday – October 19th – 11am to 6pm
11-6pm: Learn how to craft baskets using natural fibers like kudzu with Nancy Basket.
11-6pm: Quilter Sandy Benjamin demonstrates and teaches the pine burr quilting pattern.
Sunday – October 20th – 12pm to 6pm
12-6pm: Learn how to craft baskets using natural fibers like kudzu with Nancy Basket.