Dr Jon Lohman | Local Legends #75

On this week's episode of Local Legends Martin chats Virginia, folklore, and cultural exchange with Dr Jon Lohman.

For two decades Jon worked as the State Folklorist of Virginia, has a PhD in Folklore from the University of Pennsylvania, and has enjoyed a distinguished career bridging community activism, arts education, and public media.

In addition to working for many years to document, sustain, and celebrate grassroots cultural traditions in Virginia, in 2002 he launched the state’s highly successful Folklife Apprenticeship Program which supports master artists in passing down essential traditions and aspects of cultural heritage across the state.

He has served on curatorial committees and presented at major national events, including the Smithsonian Folklife Festival, America’s National Folk Festival, and the Richmond Folk Festival, also running, through the Centre for Cultural Vibrancy, the innovative schools-based virtual arts programme "World Culture in Context" which connects a diverse range of national and international artists with classrooms, fostering community, empathy, and cultural understanding.

Jon has also produced numerous traditional albums and contributed to documentary films, in addition to which the Centre for Cultural vibrancy facilitates border-free collaborations that bring diverse communities together to explore shared heritage. This includes deep-dive fieldwork, major public events, and the support and celebration of a broad range of traditional artists, from musicians to craftspeople to dancers and beyond.

Learn more about his current work here: https://culturalvibrancy.org/

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Three Ravens is a completely independent English myth and folklore podcast where we share stories, celebrate folk culture, and fall backwards through the hedgerows of history.

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