Festival of Native Peoples to deliver high-flying time

Apolinar Simbron, leader of the Tezcatlipoca Voladores, likes to travel to festivals around the world with his pole-flyers to spread the message that the Aztec and Mayan cultures are not dead. Different, maybe, from a 1,000 years ago, but not dead.

“We like to share our culture with other tribes, with all people, to let them know that we are there, that we are not extinct,” said Simbron, 45, from his home in Albuquerque, NM.

Simbron and the Voladores will be in Cherokee, NC, from July 19-21.

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Qualla Mutual receives gift of famed carver’s collection

The Qualla Arts and Crafts Mutual will soon reopen its Permanent Collection Gallery. The gallery has been closed for about two years while it received updated lighting and fresh paint and pieces displayed there were cleaned. The gallery should be open again by the end of the first week of July, said Vicki Ledford, manager of the Qualla Arts and Crafts Mutual.

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Meet the Artist: Fred Wilnoty

Meet the Artist: Fred Wilnoty
Name: Fred Wilnoty
Age: 42
Occupation: Stone carver

Fine artist Fred Wilnoty, of the Wolfetown community, found inspiration in his father, renowned stone carver John Julius Wilnoty Sr. As a boy, Fred asked his father to teach him the art of carving stone. The elder Wilnoty told his son, “I can’t teach you. If you have it in you, you have to learn to do it on your own.”

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Cherokee gears up for July Pow Wow

Cherokee’s annual July Pow Wow http://www.cherokee-nc.com/events.php?Name=July is July 6-8 at the Cherokee Indian Fair Grounds. Hundreds of dancers from tribes across the country will compete for thousands of dollars in prizes in categories including traditional, grass, fancy, jingle, and more. There will also be drum competitions featuring Northern and Southern styles.

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