5 of 5   Pre-Columbian Colonial Period African/Asian Influences 19th & 20th Centuries Folk Art Today
	WHO MAKES FOLK ART? olk artists are found all over Latin America. They live in cities, regional market towns, and thousands of small villages. They are old and young, male and female, Indian and mestizo. Most are part-time artists engaged in other employment. Many are peasant farmers who spend their days in the fields. Folk art offers escape from an often tedious lifestyle. More important, it is a way to participate in the ceremonial and ritual life of the community through traditional, and often highly revered, means. Traditionally, these artists produce materials for local consumption and frequently for no fee. Their motivation derives from the desire to satisfy the needs of the community by serving as keepers of tradition and as links between the past and present.