Day Ten: Top Ten Photos
On a bustling Sunday on the National Mall, visitors learned about the Anacostia watershed right here in D.C. and planted seeds to take home with them. At Earth Optimism × Folklife’s Wavelength station, we sanded down sandstone whales while learning about the Tongva and Čumaš people from California. A large crowd gathered for the poetry showdown between the UAE’s Rooftop Rhythms and the D.C.’s Busboys and Poets in Folklife Studio and cheered and snapped along with the passionate words.
At Festival Foodways, we learned how to make watermelon and veggie gazpacho and how to introduce invasive species like lionfish into our diets. We heard stories of migration and exile at the Story Majlis and listened to female leaders discuss their work in conservation. To close our Sunday, the crowd was treated to a preview concert from Riyaaz Qawwali in anticipation of one of the featured programs for the 2023 Folklife Festival, Creative Encounters: Living Religions in the U.S.
Join us on July 4 at the National Mall for the final day of the 2022 Folklife Festival! For an Arab twist on a classic American tradition, drop in at Festival Foodways to learn about barbecue in the UAE, and stick around for an Emirati brunch demonstration. Stop by the Crossroads Stage to learn about the majlis as a social practice and how the concept has changed over time. Tune in to Earth Optimism Stories to hear about cultural and ecological conservation and return in the afternoon for a discussion on the future of the Earth Optimism movement at the Smithsonian.
Need a souvenir? Visit the Marketplace for a parting gift, including Festival T-shirts, Smithsonian Folkways albums, and crafts from artisans in the UAE and around the world. End your visit with a special panel at Folklife Studio featuring young people from both the UAE and Earth Optimism programs sharing insights on building a sustainable future.
We can’t wait to see you to celebrate the holiday and the end of this year’s Festival together.
Annabella Hoge is the 2022 Folklife Festival media intern, and Elisa Hough is the editor at the Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage. Together they are Team Top Ten.