Illinois Arts Council announces Ethnic and Folk Arts Master/Apprentice awards

[DEC. 27, 2004]  CHICAGO -- The Illinois Arts Council is pleased to announce the recipients of the fiscal year 2005 Ethnic and Folk Arts Master/Apprentice Program awards. Fourteen master-apprentice pairs received awards totaling $42,000.

The program recognizes the need for structured opportunities to pass on traditional arts as part of the preservation of the state's cultural heritage. The program fosters this traditional teaching and learning relationship by providing a $2,000 honorarium to the master artist and a $1,000 stipend to the apprentice.

Traditional ethnic and folk arts eligible for support include those artistic practices which have a community or family base, express that community's aesthetic, heritage and tradition, and have endured through several generations. These art forms are expressions of the particular culture of the regional, national, ethnic, tribal or language group from which they spring.

For additional information about the program, contact the director of ethnic and folk arts by e-mail at [e-mail] or by phone at [phone] or toll-free within Illinois at [phone]. Individuals who are deaf or have hearing or voice impairments can call [phone] TTY.

Awards are based on the recommendation of cultural specialists. The fiscal 2005 jury consisted of three out-of-state jurors: Mark Brown of Frankfort, Ky.; Maria Carmen Gambliel of Boise, Idaho; Rick March of Madison, Wis.; and one in-state, non-voting juror: Carolyn Johnson of Chicago.

The following are 2005 award recipients:

Material culture

• Master artist Earl Edlin of Versailles has been awarded a grant to teach fishnet making to apprentice Jeff Barnett of Mount Sterling.

• Master artist Mavis Neconish of Chicago has been awarded a grant to teach traditional Oneida dressmaking to Debra Valentino of Chicago.

• Master artist Nodwesi Red Bear of Chicago has been awarded a grant to teach Native American beadwork to apprentice Melanie Cloud of Chicago.

Performing traditions

• Master artist Tapan Bhattacharrya of Homewood has been awarded a grant to teach Hindustani vocal classical music to apprentice Sudha Yarlagadda of Hinsdale.

• Master artist Anil Datar of Hoffman Estates has been awarded a grant to teach tabla playing to Rahul Phatak of Wheeling.

• Master artist Pranita Jain of Darien has been awarded a grant to teach "Bharata Natyam," East Indian dance, to apprentice Namrata Patel of Chicago.

• Master artist Gustavo Lopez of Chicago has been awarded a grant to teach "Bolero Romántico," romantic bolero music, to apprentice Juan Dies of Chicago.

• Master artist Jeff Midkiff of Carpentersville has been awarded a grant to teach bluegrass mandolin to apprentice Ashley Lewis of Sandwich.

• Master artist Rajeswari Pariti of Naperville has been awarded a grant to teach Carnatic veena music to Katyayini Aribindi of Naperville.

• Master artist Victor Pichardo of Oak Park has been awarded a grant to teach Mexican folk rhythms in music and dance to apprentice Lorena Iñiguez of Chicago.

• Master artist Bill Robinson of St. Charles has been awarded a grant to teach the hammer dulcimer to apprentice Kelsey Wales of Elgin.

• Master artist Jutarut Suntharanund of Romeoville has been awarded a grant to teach Thai classical dance to apprentice Tanya Pardungkiattisak of Carol Stream.

• Master artist Beixing Xiang of Elk Grove Village has been awarded a grant to teach the Chinese erhu to apprentice Victoria Lin of Hoffman Estates.

• Master artist Wei Yang of Elk Grove Village has been awarded a grant to teach the Chinese pipa to apprentice Joana Chen of Arlington Heights.

The Illinois Arts Council is committed to the cultural, educational and economic growth of the diverse people and communities of the state through the support and encouragement of the arts and artists.

[Illinois Arts Council news release]