Arkansas: Living Treasure Films Series

The Arkansas Living Treasure recipients documented in the films: (back row, from left) Doug Stowe, Jim Larkin, Leon Niehues, Peter Lippincott, J.R. Cook and Larry Williams; (front row, from left) Robyn Horn, Irma Gail Hatcher, Dallas Bump, Violet Hensley and Winston Taylor. Photo by Shelby Brewer, Arkansas Arts Council media and communications manager

No matter the medium or discipline, crafts develop through contemporary practice as much as preservation of tradition. The Arkansas Arts Council (AAC) realizes this through its Arkansas Made Living Treasure Films Series, through which it collaborates with the Historic Arkansas Museum and filmmakers to produce documentaries about the artists and craftspeople who have received AAC’s Arkansas Living Treasure Award. Over the past year, six filmmakers have been creating short documentaries about the lives of 11 recipients of the award, which recognizes lifetime contributions to traditional craft forms and culture in the state. The films premiered in May at the Ron Robinson Theater in downtown Little Rock. Some of the artists and champions of Arkansas traditions featured in them are a 94-year-old chair maker who uses the century-old techniques of his French ancestors and a 97-year-old fiddle maker who carves her instruments primarily with a pocket knife. To find out more, contact AAC Artist Services Program Manager Robin McClea.