Smithsonian Folklife

Fifty years ago today, we embarked on a twelve-week Festival on the National Mall in celebration of the nation’s 200th anniversary.

More than 5,000 participants and some 4.5 million visitors took part in the Bicentennial festivities. Beyond the Mall, this landmark event inspired folk arts programs and festivals across the country—many of which continue to serve Americans today.

Today, fifty years later, we open the doors to the Smithsonian Arts + Industries Building for the next four weeks with opportunities for commemoration, contemplation, and celebration that foster renewed commitment to shared ideals and aspirations. We hope you join us.

See the full schedule of our programming in Washington, D.C. this summer: https://s.si.edu/3PLnNqt

🪡: Embroidery envisioning a bird’s eye view of the 1976 Bicentennial program by Ethel Wright Mohamed. Photo by Zvonimir Bebek, Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives

From old-time fiddle tunes and bluegrass to soup beans, cornbread, and apple stack cake, the music and food of Southern Appalachia are much more complicated—and interesting—than what common stereotypes might suggest. 🎻🫘

Happening this weekend, The Bluffs Restaurant and Blue Ridge Music Center's inaugural Fiddle & Fork Festival—a collaborating festival in "Of the People: The Smithsonian Festival of Festivals"—offers a glimpse into mountain culture, celebrating food and music as intertwined living traditions. The featured musicians and cooks reflect the array of connections to those traditions and represent some of the best examples of them.

Celebrate the sounds and flavors of Appalachia on the Festival Blog: https://s.si.edu/4vkFI73

📸: Photos courtesy of Lucy Long

Celebration is a biannual Native-created, Native-led, Native-serving festival. 🌊

We were thrilled to collaborate with Celebration, a program of Sealaska Heritage Institute, this year as a part of "Of the People: The Smithsonian Festival of Festivals" supporting the participation of artists from Hawaii.

This exchange marks another chapter in a years-long relationship between Native Hawaiians and Alaska Natives, exchanging around their dance and music traditions as well as ancestral techniques of ocean voyaging and canoeing.

Follow along with the Festival of Festivals across our social media channels, and see where the next event is taking place on our website: https://s.si.edu/4uR4rii

Photos by Rebecca Fenton and Sophia Fedus

Smithsonian Solstice Celebration is a perfect opportunity to get your folklife fix this summer. ☀️

Find us in the Smithsonian Arts + Industries Building, adjacent to the Smithsonian Castle on the National Mall on Friday June 19 and Saturday June 20. You can shop, make, and connect in the Smithsonian Folklife Marketplace, and hear behind-the-scenes stories from Smithsonian staff as part of "For the Common Good: Smithsonian Voices on Our Shared Future 250."

But that's not all! On Friday evening, learn about the Mexican tradition of 'papel picado' in a workshop with local artist David Amoroso. Transform a flat piece of paper into a colorful miniature strand of intricately cut paper. Children and adults can work side by side on their own projects.

On Saturday, visitors can participate in a workshop with Ubaldo A. Sánchez to create an alfombra (carpet) out of carefully layered sawdust, florals, and other materials. Witness Sánchez's own site-specific installation in the Arts + Industries Building, and then make your own!

See the hours of all offerings listed above and view a full calendar of all Smithsonian Solstice events: https://s.si.edu/4ofdOX4

We strive to create an accessible and inclusive environment for all visitors. ASL interpretation and live captioning will be available for "For the Common Good" sessions, and ASL interpretation will be available upon request and provided as available for all other activities listed.

What happens when an archive becomes a conversation?

Smithsonian Folkways Recordings' "Anthology of Central and South American Indian Music" was compiled in 1975. While the album provided a survey of invaluable Indigenous music histories of Latin America, it was not without issues, ranging from erroneous and outdated spellings of culture-group names and designations, to incorrectly sequenced or missing tracks.

Staff members across the entire Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage (which houses the Folkways record label) took action to do the internal reparative work needed so that the record was represented as it was intended to be heard. Marco Elvis Joven Domínguez, the 2025–26 Dumbarton Oaks Humanities Fellow at Smithsonian Folkways, documented the journey of this work in a new article for Folklife Magazine.

Read more about the power of shared stewardship and ethical representation in music archives: https://s.si.edu/4ocOXTQ

📸: Album art for "Anthology of Central and South American Indian Music," designed by Ronald Clyne

You may not even be noticing the abundance of wild food growing all around us—but after hearing from Rachael West, you won't be able to miss it. 🍄‍🟫

West is an author, forager, educator, and community food advocate based in the Ozarks. She is the founder of Eating The Ozarks, a platform dedicated to reconnecting people with local food, wild plants, and seasonal living.

West joined us on the National Mall for the 2023 Smithsonian Folklife Festival, celebrating "The Ozarks: Faces and Facets of a Region." This summer, she is sharing her knowledge again in workshops with the Folklife Marketplace.

Starting at just $15, her workshops explore how to forage responsibly and confidently throughout the year, as well as how to make your every own homemade elderberry syrup. (Did you know that Missouri is the largest producer of elderberries in the United States?)

Sign up for Rachael's programs today, and explore all of the workshops being offered this summer: https://s.si.edu/4vxf3DH

Auto-generated captioning is provided for online workshops. ASL interpretation and other services are available upon request.

Photo by Shannon Binns, Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives


Ozarks Alive Missouri Folk Arts Program

The kids aren't just alright—they're BETTER than alright, and so are their creative solutions to the problems facing their communities. 🌎

The DC STEAM Expo, a collaboration between the National Children's Museum and the Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage, took place today at the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History. Fourth-grade students from across DC Public Schools presented their creative solutions to the issues affecting their neighborhoods.

From how to improve recycling, to tackling stress in schools, to even figuring out how to best dress for the weather of the day, these bright young changemakers showcased their ingenuity and creativity. Congratulations to all of the students, teachers, parents, and everyone who made today a celebration of STEAM as a tool for change! ⚡️

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This event took place as a part of our 2026 series of Spotlight Programs which complement our "Culture of, by, and for the People" initiative. These programs offer an opportunity to gather with intention as we consider what this historic moment—marking the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence—means to our shared future. Learn more on our website: https://s.si.edu/3Qqyy1F

"We who believe in freedom cannot rest until it comes." —Dr. Bernice Johnson Reagon, "Ella's Song" 🎵

The Juneteenth Freedom Celebration—themed "Power in the Past, Strength in the Future"—is a free, full-day, block-party-style event at the Smithsonian's Anacostia Community Museum, presented in collaboration with the Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage as part of the Smithsonian’s "Our Shared Future: 250" campaign.

Join us on June 19 from 10 a.m.—10 p.m. as we commemorate Juneteenth through storytelling, music, foodways, movement, and shared community experiences that honor the resilience, creativity, and culture.

"We Hold These Truths," a mobile storytelling initiative from Smithsonian Folklife, will be present to document and gather stories from YOU about your connections to place, culture, and history. Every recorded interview becomes part of a national archive and living record of American stories told by the people, for the people.

Learn more and RSVP so you can get the most up to date information about the day: https://s.si.edu/4uchLx6

Accessible seating is available for presentations and ASL interpretation will be provided.

Photos by Matailong Du, Anacostia Community Museum

Looking to get off your screen this summer and get hands-on with a new creative practice? We've got you covered. 🎨

The Folklife Marketplace is back this summer in the Smithsonian Arts + Industries Building, and with it, an exciting series of hands-on workshops with local and visiting artists. From basketry and bookbinding to elderberry syrup and printmaking, try your hand at a new craft! 📒

These sessions will vary in format, skill level, and price. Some are free drop-in workshops; most require registration and a participation fee. Some are on Zoom; most are in person.

View the full slate of workshops and sign up today: https://s.si.edu/4vxf3DH