Folklife, folk arts, and folklore all spring from cultural identity, which comes from belonging to a social group. Family heritage—national or ethnic—often informs a person’s sense of self. Cultural identity may also derive from language, gender, religion, age, occupation, and locality or sense of place. Folk traditions are typically shared in informal ways and passed from one person to another by word of mouth, imitation, or observation.

Culture is something we share with others in a social group. It’s our folklife: our common values and beliefs, the creative ways we express identity in a group, the knowledge we share, the objects that hold significance and meaning, the activities we engage in as a community. Most people belong to many different “folk groups” or communities. Every person is unique. Depending on where you are and who you are with, you may express different aspects of your own cultural identity.  Join us in a quest to “find your folklife”—and share on social media with the hashtag #NVFolkFAN.

Over the past three years we have been photographing Nevadans—your friends and neighbors—as they appear when representing cultural identity and as they appear in their everyday lives at home, on the job, or enjoying recreational activities. That work is represented in the 22 “lenticular two-flip” panels of this exhibition.  To find out more about lenticular art, click here.