A guitar player with a friendly smile, wearing a festive hat and a traditional serape shawl.
Oregon Culture Keepers Roster
About the Oregon Culture Keepers Roster

Search the online Oregon Culture Keepers Roster—an ever-expanding, juried selection of folk and traditional artists—and connect with cultural experts documented through our regional surveys and Traditional Arts Apprenticeship Program.

Rostered artists and culture keepers can provide educational presentations, hands-on demonstrations, or performances to a variety of audiences. We recommend a fee of at least $250 plus travel expenses unless otherwise noted, for such appearances. We do not serve as a booking agent, so please contact the artists directly.

Search the roster by county or keyword to find

  • highly skilled traditional artists for your classroom,
  • storytellers for your library event,
  • cultural experts for your humanities program,
  • performers for your festival stage, or
  • craft artists for demonstrations.

Check back often—we regularly add new folk and traditional artists!

Apply

Interested in applying to be on the roster?

First, review OFN’s definition of a Culture Keeper:

  • A Culture Keeper is a folk or traditional artist, who actively practices, passes on, and preserves the living cultural traditions of the cultural community to which they belong and is recognized by that community. Folk and traditional arts do not include folk-inspired art, which is produced by individuals and groups who are not part of the cultural community that originally produced/created/developed the art form, even if the quality of the art is excellent.

Second, fill out and send in the application form and all required work samples.

Or contact us at 541-346-3820 | ofn@uoregon.edu for assistance.

Found 252 profiles.
Ed Edmo sits in front of green metal shelves. He wears a dark blue long sleeve shirt, a patterned vest, two shell necklaces, a medicine bag, and glasses.
Ed Edmo
Native American Storytelling
Ed Edmo (Portland) is a storyteller from the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes. As a boy growing up in Celilo Falls, an ancient Native American site along the Columbia River, he heard stories from his parents and grandparents. Edmo brings his rich repertoire alive for audiences near and far.
Eleeziaa Howard stands in front of tall bushes while holding a small pair of handcrafted moccasins. She wears a gray shirt.
Eleeziaa Howard
Moccasin Crafting
Eleeziaa Howard (Milwaukie, OR) makes moccasins that reflect the cultural heritage of her ancestral community, the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians. Her moccasins are a “round top” style; she makes each one from a single piece of leather and then beads them in red, black, and turquoise, colors that she says are typical of northwest tribes. Howard learned this artform from her cousin, and has begun to share her skills with others, both online as well as in person and at Siletz culture camps.
Emma Jean Smith stands indoors holding up a light pink knitted cardigan. She wears a dark blue sweater.
Emma Jean Smith
Knitting, Sewing, Quilting, Storytelling, Gardening, Canning
Emma Jean Smith (Grass Valley) is a master of many traditional crafts and activities including quilting, sewing, knitting, canning, and gardening. Smith acquired her skills from her mother. Smith, a 4H teacher for 52 years, passed those same skills along to several more generations of students.
Eric Jepsen sits in a chair in front of a framed flower painting playing a fiddle. He wears a blue plaid shirt.
Eric Jepsen
Fiddling
Eric Jepsen (Ione) is an old time fiddler who plays variety of styles. He grew up on a wheat farm in Ione and began playing violin when he was about 5 years old.
Esther charismatically tells a story, gesturing upwards with both of her hands. She wears a traditional leather outfit made with shells and beads as well as a beaded cap.
Esther Stutzman
Traditional Kalapuya/Coos Storytelling
Esther Stutzman (Yoncalla) is a traditional storyteller and educator. Stutzman, who is Komemma Kalapuya (from the Willamette Valley) on her mother's side and Hanis Coos from the Oregon coast on her father's side, is an enrolled member of the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians. Stutzman works with schools, museums, libraries, and universities to share her culture and history. She is also a founding member of the six-woman Old West Cowgirl band, Slow Ponies.
Eva Castellanoz sits in front of a bookshelf wearing a red jacket.
Eva Castellanoz
Native American Curanderismo (Traditional Healing)
Eva Castellanoz (Nyssa) makes coronas, used for the traditional Mexican quinceañera (coming-of-age) ritual. A National Heritage Fellow (1989), she is also a curandera (healer), activist, teacher, and spokesperson for Oregon's Latino community.
Feryal Abbasi-Ghnaim stands against a white wall holding up a piece of red and white embroidery. She wears a red and black embroidered outfit.
Feryal Abbasi-Ghnaim
Palestinian Embroidery
Feryal Abbasi-Ghnaim (Portland) is a traditional Palestinian embroiderer and three time Oregon Folklife Network Traditional Arts Apprenticeship Program Master Artist in 2012, 2014 and 2017. A National Heritage Fellow (2018), Abbasi-Ghnaim learned the technique of Palestinian embroidery and the stories behind the traditional patterns from her mother and grandmother.
Flo Calhoun stands outside next to an ocean themed quilt. She wears a blue polo shirt.
Flo Calhoun
Quilting
Flo Calhoun (Corvallis) started making quilts in 1976. An award-winning quilter, Calhoun has a repertoire that includes a variety of styles and patterns. Strongly influenced by her grandmother, she explained, “I learned to do a lot of things my grandmother did to prove myself to her.”
David and Claire stand against a white wall wearing traditional Norwegian folk outfits. David wears black pants, a red plaid shirt, white undershirt, and black jacket. Claire wears an embroidered navy blue dress over a long sleeve white shirt.
Fossegrimen
Scandinavian Folk Music Group
Fossegrimen (Eugene) is a Scandinavian folk dance band founded by David and Claire Elliker-Vågsberg in 1999. They have performed in Norway, Salem, Portland, and Eugene, and often provide the music for Scandinavian folk dances, weddings, festivals, and fairs.
Francisco Bautista stands at a large wooden weaving machine. He wears a dark brown polo.
Francisco Bautista
Rug Weaving
Francisco Bautista (Sandy) is a fourth generation Zapotec weaver from Teotitlán del Valle, a small village outside of Oaxaca City, Mexico renowned for its handcrafted textiles. Under the tutelage of his father, Bautista began learning his craft at age seven.
Frank Bettencourt stands and holds a small wooden vehicle replica. He wears a tan baseball cap, red sweater, and jeans.
Frank Bettencourt
Woodworking
Frank Bettencourt (Condon), is a woodworker who produces replicas of farm equipment, vehicles and old western buildings - all without patterns. His pieces pay homage to the aesthetics of his past occupation as farmer and cowboy.
Frank Murphy stands in a kitchen with his arms folded wearing a white chef uniform.
Frank Murphy
Chef, Storyteller, Teacher
Frank Murphy (North Bend) is an Irish chef and storyteller and teaches culinary arts at North Bend High School. Murphy, who grew up in Dublin and attended culinary school there, also learned to cook from his mother and grandmother. He tells a variety of stories, some tall tales and others more historical or anecdotal, about his youth in Dublin, his grandparents, and the nearby countryside.
Frederick A. Hill stands next to a drum wearing a white shirt and jeans, and behind him are two more drums on a table.
Frederick A. Hill
Drumming, Drum Making, and Pow Wow Announcing
Frederick A. Hill, Sr. (Pendleton) is a Cayuse drum maker and singer who learned to make drums from his late uncle, Charlie McKay. He is also a well-known powwow Master of Ceremonies.
Grace Ann Kalama stretches a piece of fry bread dough. She wears a purple t-shirt.
Grace Ann Kalama
Native American Foodways
Grace Ann Kalama (Warm Springs) makes and sells homemade Indian fry bread at the family’s Kalama Family Fry Bread stand. Using flour, baking powder, milk, sugar, and water, she creates the dough, then fries it in hot oil. The Kalama stand is a fixture of the Warm Springs community with many regular customers.
Gregorio Cortaberria sits outside on a teal bucket and holds a mason jar. He wears a yellow t-shirt with suspenders and blue jeans.
Gregorio Cortaberria
Sheep Shearing
Gregorio Cortaberria (Hermiston) is an expert sheep shearer. In his prime, he could shear over 100 sheep in an hour.
Members of Grupo Condor stand outside holding woodpipes, a drum, and an acoustic guitar.
Grupo Condor
Latin American Folk Music and Musical Instruments
Grupo Condor is a touring folk music ensemble that blends the styles of Spanish, African, and Native American influences. Grupo Condor members are dedicated to the preservation of their diverse heritage and musical backgrounds. Residents of Oregon, group members have traveled throughout the USA, Canada, Mexico and Europe.
Hal Gordon stands in front of two picture frames on a white wall. He wears a brown polo shirt.
Hal Gordon
Fly Tying
Hal Gordon (Aloha) is a traditional fly tyer and fisherman who teaches fly tying and sells his flies in many local shops in Aloha area. In 2010, he was named Oregon’s Federation of Fly Fishers “Fly Tyer of the Year” and currently chairs multiple state and local fly tying associations.
Hobe Kytr sits in front of a while wall and holds a banjo. He wears a blue collared shirt.
Hobe Kytr
Folklorist, Songwriter, and Musician
Hobe Kytr (Astoria, OR) is a folklorist, songwriter, and musician who specializes in songs about thistory and folklore of Northwest regional life, especially that of fishermen and loggers. Hobe has worked to identify and reanimate songs in archival texts and other discovered sources. These include "Old Miller Sands," a song by an Irish fisher about working on the Columbia River seining grounds, and "Logging at Butler’s Camp," a moniker song about life at a Northwest logging camp.
Hossein Salehi sits with a santoor instrument. He wears a navy blue blazer and gray dress pants.
Hossein Salehi
Santoor Music
Hossein Salehi (Portland) is a master santoor player who has played and taught in Oregon and the United States since the 1980s.
Houshang Sedighi stands against a white background. He wears a black suit and a red and black tie.
Houshang Sedighi
Kurdish Dance
Houshang Sedighi (Beaverton) is a traditional Kurdish dancer and dance teacher. Govend, Helperkê, and hayî are among a group of handholding dances similar to those from other cultures in the Middle East. Most dances are also circle dances that often feature a single dancer or a couple at the center of the circle.
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