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José Soto, Mexican folkloric dancer
Learn about how we support traditional artists in Arizona through our Master-Apprentice Artist Award.
We’re getting ready for TMY!
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Save the date: Oct. 11-13, 2019
End of Life Programs
SFA’s End of Life: Continuum (EOL) project shares cultural knowledge about traditions, expressions, and practices associated with end of life, grief, mourning and death ... [Continue Reading]
VozFrontera in Nogales
A city without culture is a dead city. You just live to eat and work. Where there’s no creativity, no spontaneity, it’s a challenge to get your dreams going. –Gustavo ... [Continue Reading]
Become a Member
Invest in the Beauty of Everyday Life. Become a Member of SFA Today! Now more than ever, cultural learning is an important part of being a loving citizen and a ... [Continue Reading]
My Sunrise: How I came of age the Apache way
by Brooke Gregg The Apache Sunrise Dance is a beautiful ceremony that has been going on for centuries to strengthen a young woman during her coming of age and offer her blessings for a strong, long life. Most of my friends had dances and they told me how they had fun and how special it […]
Honoring Traditions/Bridging Generations
We’re happy to share this video from Honoring Traditions/Bridging Generations, an educational program offered by the Arizona State Museum celebrating traditional artists in the state. Funded by a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts, the program brought together master and emerging artists to learn from each other and to stimulate dialogue about their […]
Lola’s Quince: A Lesson in Belonging
by Mele Martinez A few months before her 15th birthday, Lola and I walked into a quinceañera dress shop and found ourselves surrounded by sequins, heavily beaded lace, and bouffant petticoats—none of which matched my daughter’s style. Lola walked down the dress aisles in awe but was hesitant to touch anything. She gazed into the […]
Becoming Woman: 7 Girls Reflect on Rites of Passage
The diverse cultures of the Southwest mark the transformation from girl to woman in distinct ways, from the Sunrise Ceremony of the Apache people to the Navajo Kindaalda ceremony to the quinceañera celebration in Latinx communities. But what are the more personal and individual ways girls mark coming of age? Does it happen at the […]