Pennsylvania Folklife Vol. 15, No. 4 Constantine Kermes
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Ursinus College Digital Commons @ Ursinus College Pennsylvania Folklife Magazine Pennsylvania Folklife Society Collection Summer 1966 Pennsylvania Folklife Vol. 15, No. 4 Constantine Kermes Earl F. Robacker Ada Robacker Henry Glassie Don Yoder See next page for additional authors Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.ursinus.edu/pafolklifemag Part of the American Art and Architecture Commons, American Material Culture Commons, Christian Denominations and Sects Commons, Cultural History Commons, Ethnic Studies Commons, Fiber, Textile, and Weaving Arts Commons, Folklore Commons, Genealogy Commons, German Language and Literature Commons, Historic Preservation and Conservation Commons, History of Religion Commons, Linguistics Commons, and the Social and Cultural Anthropology Commons Click here to let us know how access to this document benefits oy u. Recommended Citation Kermes, Constantine; Robacker, Earl F.; Robacker, Ada; Glassie, Henry; Yoder, Don; Barrick, Mac E.; Dieffenbach, Victor C.; and Power, Tyrone, "Pennsylvania Folklife Vol. 15, No. 4" (1966). Pennsylvania Folklife Magazine. 25. https://digitalcommons.ursinus.edu/pafolklifemag/25 This Book is brought to you for free and open access by the Pennsylvania Folklife Society Collection at Digital Commons @ Ursinus College. It has been accepted for inclusion in Pennsylvania Folklife Magazine by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons @ Ursinus College. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Authors Constantine Kermes, Earl F. Robacker, Ada Robacker, Henry Glassie, Don Yoder, Mac E. Barrick, Victor C. Dieffenbach, and Tyrone Power This book is available at Digital Commons @ Ursinus College: https://digitalcommons.ursinus.edu/pafolklifemag/25 AMISH PENNSYLVANIANS Sall erkraut-ma /ling til e Old TV ay-From H . L. Fischer, "'S A It Marik-Haw" (York, 1879). A. W. AUNER, SONG PUBLISHER & PRINTER, Tenth and Race Sts., Philadelphia., Pa. Graut-Howwel or SOUR KROUT. Cabbage-Plrl11e AS SUNG BY JAMES HOWARD• • Now I want to go and toll you how to mako good Sour Krout, 80 if you listen mit your cars, I 'll tell you 1111 n.bout it; It is not made out of 10llthor lIB Romo peoplo supposes, But is made from dem fl owers wh at we call Cabbago Hoses. Sour Krout is bully, I toll you it is fin o, Sau erkraut is a Pennsylvania Dutch deli So help mo liebor gracious, I can cat him all do timo. cacy and has bee n a stap le of the folk cuisine since thr 17 th and 18th Century Now whero dis Cabbago is r; rowinf!, so nico as nico can be, i1l1111igration . I I was such a fa vorite, in fact, We pull dom up nnd chop dem not pi gger as a pea; thatl v isitors to Pennsylvania sometimes Den wo put dom in a tub and ~ to mp dern mit our feet, refenrd to the Dulch as the "Sau erkra1lt Und stomp, und stomp, und stomp to mako dem nice und sweet. Dutch." The dish was raten always on New Sour Krout is bully, I telIyou it is fin c, Year's-to bring good lu ck throtlghout thr So help me lieber g racious, I can eat him all de time. yrar?-in some parts of Pennsylvan ia and TVrstern Maryland it was eaten with turkey So den we put in pl enty salt but don't usc no slluff, for Christmas dinner, and rveryw hel'e We don't use no sky ulll pepper nor any of dn.t ~t uff ; Prn"l1sy lvania farmrrs at r it fr equen tly We put dem down tho cell ar till he begin s to Hhlll ell , thml/ gh01lt th r fa ll and wintrr months, 80 help me )jeber gracious, U8 D utchlllll UB liko him well. Pennsylvania's predilectio11 for saurrliraut Sour K rout is bul1y, I tcl1 you it is fin e, has bee n recordrd in folkta le, jrst, and So help mo liober g rao ious, I can eat him all de timo. SO l/ f{. TVr publish herr th e famous 19th Ce' niIlTY "Sol/r Krollt Song"-a Dlltch-Eng 80 when he shmoll s liko d under, und can't shmcll no shmoller, lish m1lsic-hall prodllction iss II I' d in broad We go down by d at tub whnt wo leave down dnt ccllar ; sid(' form by A. lfI. A 1II/rl', jJroli[ic song W e put BO rn e in a kettle mit speck und let dem bi l1 c, pllblisher of 19th Century Philadelphia. So help me you can sh mell cm for fifty thousand miles. For (f l'l'1"sion of this song which was rr Sour K rout is bully, I tell you it is fi no, cordNI froll1 folli tradition, with th r m1lsic, So help me liebor g racious, I cnn cat him all de t ime. SeC' th e' artie/r. "Sal/rrlir(fllt in th e Penn syh'a nia Foll? -C ultllJ"r," PCllnsy h 'ania folk lifc, Vol. Xll No.2 (Sul/1/11rr 1961), 1)/), A. w. Jlum~ :JR. ' S 56-69.-Editor. CARD ~ JOB PR~r~l~rjlG ~O@~'S Tenth and Race Sts., Philadelphia, Pa, EDITOR: SUMMER 1966, Vol. 15, No.4 Dr. D on Yod er D EP ARTMENTA L EDITORS: Dr. Earl F. R obacker, Antiques Contents Edna Eby H eller, Cookery Olive C . Zehner, Cmlts 2 Amish Album L eR oy G ensler, Design CONSTA 'TINE KERMES Dr. J. William Frey, M usic E DITOR EMERITUS: 6 Look Back, Once! Dr. Alfred L . Shoemaker EARL F. AND ADA F . R OBACKER SUBSCRI PTION RATES : 12 The Pennsylvania Barn in the South: Part II HENRY GLAS IE .$4.00 a year in the U nited Sta tes a nd Canada. E lsewhere fifty cen ts add i tiona l f o r p os t age. Single copies S1. 00. 26 MSS AND PHOTOGRAP HS: The Editor will be glad to consider Folk Festival Map on Back Cover i SS a nd p hotographs sent w ith a view to p u blication. \ Vhen unsuit able, a nd if accomp anied by retu rn 29 Contributors to this Issue postage, every care will be exer cised toward their return, although 30 FESTIVAL HIGHLIGHTS no responsib ility for their safety is ass u med. 38 Twenty Questions on Powwowing P EN SYL VAN I A F OLKLIFE, Do YODER Summer 1966, Vo1.l 5, TO. 4, pub lis hed quarterly by the Pe n nsyl 41 Moon-Signs in Cumberland County van ia Folklife Society, Inc., L a n MAC E. BARR ICK caster, Pen nsylvania. Subscrip tions a nd business corresponden ce: Box 1053, L a ncaster, Pennsylvania. Ed i 44 Reminiscences of "Des Dumm FattcI" VICTOR C. DI EFFE BAC H tori a l corresponde n ce: Dr. D o n Yoder, Bennett H a ll Box 19, U n i versity of Pe n nsylva n ia, Philad el 50 Notes and Documents p hia 4, P e nnsyl va nia . Con tents Two D ocumen ts [rom the F irst \IVorld \ I\Tar cop yrighted . Entered as second class malleI' 52 The Dutch and Irish Colonies of Pennsylvania at Lancaster, Pen nsy lva n ia . TYRO I:: P O\VI::R Amish Album P!/ Cons-tant-ine Life in its esse ntials remains the sa me no ma tter what lhe co ndilions of socie lY or the eXle nt of technical adva nces. This Slalement by La ncasler Co unty anist Consla ntine Kermes is echoed in hi s paintings of the " Plain People" of Pennsylva ni a. Mr. Kermes has chosen lO express in paint the basic way of life of lhese rural groups which exi st in the midst of Ameri ca's industri alized, ma teri a li sti c socielY. These are de picted by Kermes in a n a pproach which echoes the art o f hi s Greek a nceslry as well as hi s interes t in Ameri ca n Folk Art. M a ny of the folk art designs used in Pennsylvania are a lra nspla nted form of the peasant a rts of Germa ny. For the mos t pan , the sy mbo li c imagery used in these popular arts were Byza nline a nd ge nerally Near Eastern in origin, hav :ng been broug ht inlO the Rhine Va ll ey by tra velers such as the Crusaders during the Middle Ages. The Greek forebears of Const:1 nline Kermes were paint ers of the earl y Christi a n stylized, holy images ca ll ed " ico ns." The ea rl y makers of devO lional images looked upon reali sti c art as p:1ga n and in their work chose lo stress lhe sy mbo li c a nd impersonal ralher lha n the re prese nta tional. R oo/ea Inn ocence 2 /U('( /ta llica / R oofs Prnl1sv lvonia Roots Public Auction: Private Echoes- ...... In Search of Innocence 3 Outside W orld Transplanted B yzantine Pennsylvania D II /ch Th(m li sgi7ling Sli pper Co ll ec lion o f Hildegarde- Anna S o sen~ 4 Milkmaids Maternal Roots Amish Album , '. by ~/'mes In a similar way, it is this form and spirit which K e rm e~ employs to depict his Pennsy lva nia neighbors. Because he feels this sy mbolic approach underscores the te nacity with which the Pla in People cling to basic principles in a frantic modern world, he has chosen to paint them in an a pproach which echoes Byza ntine ico ns-employi ng Rat color areas and strong linear patterns. In additio ll to depicting the rural groups of Pe nnsy l vania, the sea rch [or materi al has taken J\ 1r.