Tuesday, August 21, 2007

Ocrafolk School to Open This Fall on Ocracoke Island



Ocracoke Island, in the famed and beautiful Outer Banks of North Carolina, is inviting visitors to a unique learning experience. The new “Ocrafolk School” will focus on arts, culture, history, and ecology, and welcome participants into the community of artisans
in historic Ocracoke Village.

The Ocrafolk School will hold its first sessions in October and November 2007, inviting participants to join week-long workshops in arts, crafts, cooking, music, local history, and sailing, in a relaxed island setting.




Local and regional instructors will welcome adult students of all skill levels to participate in hands-on learning experiences. The first session is October 21-26, 2007, with courses in “Wood Carving” with William Nathan Spencer; “Jewelry Making” with Kathleen O’Neal; “Ocracoke History and Culture” with Philip Howard; “Island Cooking” with Debbie Wells; “Music and Stories of the Sea” with Bob Zentz; “Island Photography” with Ann Ehringhaus; followed by a second session October 28-November 2, 2007 including “Model Boat Building” with Jimmy Amspacher, “Painting in Watercolor with Grace and Ease” by Mary Ellen Golden; “Basketry: Materials and Techniques” with Judith Saunders; “Old Time Sailing and Seafaring Traditions” with Capt. Rob Temple; “Lifesavers and Light Keepers” with John Golden; and “From the Beach to the Marsh: Exploring Ocracoke’s Wild Side” with David Senseney.



The Ocrafolk School’s mission includes preserving local culture, promoting appreciation of Ocracoke’s natural resources, and bringing creative people into the community. Another purpose is to provide participants with a personal connection to the island that goes beyond a typical summer vacation. “The Ocrafolk School will offer people an in-depth experience, and a chance to learn something new,” says founder and director Gary Mitchell, but he stresses that the focus won’t be “too academic.”

“I want the week to be more meaningful than just the class. There’s a lot more to a folk school than just learning a craft. It’s about the total experience.” At the Ocrafolk School that “total experience” might involve group meals with other students and teachers, beach bon-fires, square dances, storytelling, music jams, sailing trips, or attending a show at Ocracoke’s Deepwater Theater.

Mitchell says the idea for a folk school on Ocracoke “has been batted around for a long time, but it really hadn’t been pursued here because Ocracoke has so little space for a large facility or campus. Recently, I began to realize that our whole village can serve as the campus. We already have the housing and food service infrastructure in place, and with all the talented and creative people here, we already have well-qualified instructors in a broad range of subjects. We already have people who love to come to Ocracoke. It seemed to be an idea that we could realize after all, with some organization of existing resources.”



Mitchell is no stranger to organizing Ocracoke’s existing resources. In 1996, he corralled the island’s musicians and recorded their singing and playing in his own Soundside Studio. Those tracks became the first Ocrafolk Music Sampler CD, which was sponsored by Ocracoke Preservation Society. The popularity of the project led to the creation of the Ocrafolk Opry, which in turn spawned the Ocrafolk Music and Storytelling Festival, now an annual event. Over the last 10 years, the Ocrafolk phenomenon has transformed the arts and music scene on Ocracoke, and made it a vibrant part of the community for residents and visitors to enjoy. Many of the same artists and organizers who’ve worked with Mitchell on music projects have signed on to help with the folk school.

A committee under the Ocracoke Preservation Society was formed to oversee the Ocrafolk School. Board members are Philip Howard, Merle Davis, Marcy Brenner, Ann Ehringhaus and David Tweedie, all of whom are involved in the arts on Ocracoke. They’ve helped to organize the classes and instructors and brainstormed on ways to get the folk school’s metaphorical doors open. The Ocrafolk School will offer workshops during Ocracoke’s shoulder seasons every spring and fall.

For information about the Ocrafolk School, please visit the Web site at www.ocrafolkschool.org , email gary@ocrafolkschool.org, or call 252- 928-1541.
The workshops cost $495 per week including group meals and evening activities. Housing is the responsibility of the students, but contact the Ocrafolk School for recommendations. Some classes will have additional fees for materials.

For more information about Ocracoke Island, please visit www.ocracokevillage.com

Contact: Gary Mitchell, Director
Ocrafolk School
PO Box 596
Ocracoke, NC 27960
252-928-1541
gary@ocrafolkschool.org
www.ocrafolkschool.org

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