Guest Curators

We want to say thank you to our outgoing Guest Curator, Heather Joseph-Witham! If you missed a chance to see her fantastic artifacts, please stop by the Guest Curator Archive Page. You can also examine all of our past Guest Curator’s as well.

Welcome to our Guest Curator, Jeannie Thomas!

“From the Hands of Those I Love”

Lacking the talents of the rest of my family, but nonetheless having a deep appreciation for the beauty of the everyday world, it was more or less inevitable that I would become a folklorist. I am also the head of the Department of English at Utah State University. I am the author or co-author of several books including Putting the Supernatural in Its Place (2015, University of Utah Press); Haunting Experiences (2007, Utah State University Press, Brian McConnell Book Award); Naked Barbies, Warrior Joes, and Other Forms of Visible Gender (2003, University of Virginia Press); and Featherless Chickens, Laughing Women, and Serious Stories (1997, University of Virginia Press, Elli Köngäs-Maranda Prize). My scholarly work has appeared in the Journal of American Folklore, Western Folklore, Journal of Folklore Research, Southern Folklore, Midwestern Folklore, and Contemporary Legend, among others.

Pottery vase made by my father, John Banks.

Pottery plate and kiln-formed glass made by my daughter, Madison, as a child.

Pottery bowl made by my father, John Banks.

Kiln-formed glass plate made by my sister, Nancy Banks.

Descendants of asters grown in Colorado by my maternal grandfather, given to me by my mother, Dorothy Banks.

Pottery vase and kiln-formed glass made by my son, Rio, as a child.

If you are a folklorist or a collector of folklore/popular culture artifacts, please consider becoming a Guest Curator. Your objects will be highlighted here on a rotating basis.

All we ask is that the objects be yours, you have a photograph of the objects, and all or most of the information about the object (see the guidelines below, for more details).

Guest Curator Guidelines:

1. Artifacts must fall within the subject of our website (folklore, folk art, popular culture, etc).

2. Artifacts must be a part of your own personal collection.

3. Submissions must be limited to no more than five artifacts.

4. Submissions must contain a photograph of the artifact, as well as the title, purpose, country of origin, culture , materials, and dimensions of the artifact.

5. We also would like your photograph and a brief biography to accompany the collection.

Please contact, flpcgallery@gmail.com and write Guest Curator in the subject line for further information or with any questions. We cannot wait to highlight your collection!