Folk Nation: Crafting Patriotism in the United States

Vernacular art and patriotic expression from the museum's collections, exploring how Americans have constructed national identity through folk objects from the Revolutionary War era to today.

Why go

The exhibition examines how folk art—a category shaped by collectors and markets—reveals the complexities of American patriotism, positioning historical and contemporary works as multilayered expressions that reflect both love of country and deeper cultural contradictions.

What to expect

Works spanning oil paintings, wooden whirligigs, limestone sculpture, and carved decoys, including pieces by Edward Hicks and William Edmondson, displayed in the Audrey B. Heckler Gallery to trace how makers have employed diverse media to express national identity.

Things to know

• Mounted during the U.S. semiquincentennial (250th anniversary).
• Curated by Emelie Gevalt, PhD, Deputy Director & Chief Curatorial Officer, and Caroline Culp, PhD, Warren Family Assistant Curator.
• Explores how folk art as a category developed in conjunction with art and antiques markets.
• Traces impulses to construct national history and collective identity beginning after the Revolutionary War, gathering momentum in the late
• Part of Handwork 2026, presented by Craft in America.
• Lead support provided by Catherine Loevner; additional support from Lily Auchincloss Foundation, Citi, and NYC Department of Cultural Affair

Plan your visit

Free admission. The exhibition closes September 13 for installation of the next show and reopens October 9. Related programs include virtual talks on April 27, July 1, and August 4, 2026.

From the venue

Mounted during the celebration of the United States semiquincentennial, Folk Nation: Crafting Patriotism in the United States draws from the American Folk Art Museum's rich collections to explore links between vernacular art and the construction of an American sense of self.