Franco-American Traditional Woodcarvers of Northern New England Project / Sculpteurs sur bois traditionnels

The Franco-American Traditional Woodcarvers of Northern New England Project / Sculpteurs sur bois traditionnels was a multiphase, grant-funded project initiated by the Franco-American Centre Franco-Américain of Manchester, New Hampshire, in 1994. Julien Olivier, an educator, folklorist, and writer served as project director.

Phase I commenced in April 1994 with an aim to document Franco-American woodcarvers in New Hampshire, Maine, and Vermont that were primarily not known to folklorists. The fieldwork identified 108 living and deceased Franco-American woodcarvers throughout Northern New England.

This phase was funded through the Lila Wallace – Reader’s Digest Fund for Folk Culture and a Community Arts Program grant from the New Hampshire State Council on the Arts. As outlined in the grant application, the objectives were “(1) The development of a heightened appreciation of the woodcarving tradition and thus of traditional arts within the Franco-American community by members and by others. (2) Through visibility, it is hoped the artists will be prompted to continue their work and to share their art with the community. (3) It is also hoped that young artists will be encouraged to continue this tradition.”

The seven fieldworkers on this project included three state folklorists and four Franco-American community-based researchers in New Hampshire, Maine, and Vermont. There are indications that over 50 interviews were conducted. Select project interviews were recorded on audiocassettes.

Funding for phase II was awarded in 1995 by the National Endowment for the Arts to create and mount an exhibition at the Franco-American Centre in Manchester, New Hampshire. The exhibit, Sur bois: Franco-American Woodcarvers of Northern New England, opened on 12 April 1996 with 46 artists exhibiting 84 pieces of artwork. Exhibit labels and text panels were in both French and English.

In addition to the exhibition, there was a series of five lectures at the Franco-American Centre between 18 April and 12 September 1996 funded by the New Hampshire Humanities Council and four artist demonstrations funded by the National Endowment for the Arts.

For phase III, the New Hampshire State Council on the Arts awarded the Franco-American Centre funding to create a touring exhibit to be on display in various Franco-American communities of Northern New England. Between October 1996 and December 1997, the exhibit travelled to Berlin, New Hampshire; Newport, New Hampshire; Keene, New Hampshire; Laconia, New Hampshire; Dover, New Hampshire; Middlebury, Vermont; and Lewiston, Maine.