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Missouri Folk Arts Program

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The Art of Work

Decorative and stylistic innovations set luthiers apart from their peers. Particular species of European maple and spruce are standards among many violin makers, including Geoff Seitz and Greg Krone. Others, like Bernard Allen, choose maples native to the United States like red, birdseye, and fiddleback. Allen likes their high-quality sound and beautiful appearance. John Wynn departs from the spruce and maple standard set in the 1930s by Gibson for mandolins. He loves to incorporate Missouri woods like black walnut and Douglas fir. Both Wynn and Seitz customize their instruments even further with fine abalone inlays and intricate wood carvings.

Luthiers also adapt instruments to serve particular functions. Luther Medley is best known for his “doghouse” bass. A devoted bluegrass musician, he engineered an affordable bass fiddle designed especially for quick, rhythmic bluegrass. The neck is narrower for easier plucking instead of bowing. The body’s bottom and top are constructed of Baltic birch wood, often used in speaker cabinetry for high sound output. Medley’s biggest innovation is the addition of a “treble bar” to the standard bass bar construction. The result is a bass that produces an equal amount of volume across all strings and a vibrant sound conducive to “thumpin” the bass without external amplification.


The Work of Art
John Wynn
Gregory Krone
 Luther Medley
Bernard Allen
The Art of Work
Donald Graves
Transformation and Creativity
Geoffrey Seitz
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Show Me Folk

ANNOUNCING MISSOURI’S NEW LIVING TRADITIONS SUSTAINER FELLOWSHIP!!

Missouri’s Living Traditions Sustainer Fellowship seeks to recognize the artistic excellence and lifetime achievement of living traditional artists in the Show Me State. The fellowships will honor those individuals’ deep-rooted contributions to their art forms and the…

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Jan 13, 2023 Read More

A visit with an old friend, Lee Ann Sours–Artist Profile by Nathan Lee McAlister

“In the beginning I wasn’t thinking about being a fiber artist. I was just thinking about farming.” Lee Ann Sours   Over the last few years, Missouri Folk Arts has collaborated with community documentarians to…

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End of Year Donations welcomed by Missouri Folk Arts

Missouri Folk Arts is thankful to individual donors who have provided unrestricted gift funds that support opportunities for staff and traditional artists beyond those designated in grant-funded projects. Previous examples include artistic fees; travel; fees…

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Nov 28, 2022 Read More
Missouri Folk Arts Program

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573-882-6296 higginsll@missouri.edu

Missouri Folk Arts
Museum of Art and Archaeology
520 South 9th Street
Room 1, Ellis Library
Columbia, MO 65211


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