Traditional ethnic art
The South Dakota Arts Council defines traditional art as art that comes from a community or family, expresses their heritages, and has usually been practiced for several generations. The communities can be ethnic, tribal, regional or religious. The skills usually are passed on informally, for example through some sort of apprenticeship, rather than through academic training.
Flexibility
The Alabama State Council of the Arts says "traditional art" doesn't mean that everything is done the same way the artist's ancestors did it. Traditional artists use old styles and techniques, but within those boundaries, they're free to experiment and add the results of their own personal creativity to the form.
Native American Traditional Art
In America, Native American culture is one source of traditional art. Native-language.org says the traditional forms include jewelry, rugs, beadwork, pottery, baskets and musical instruments, as well as distinctive objects such as dreamcatchers or kachina dolls. Most traditions will be specific to a particular region, such as the Southwest, or tribes such as the Navajo, Lakota or Cherokee.
Other American Traditional Art
The definition of traditional American art covers many forms other than Native American: Southern quilting, scrimshaw, old-style furniture, traditional musical instruments and Amish arts and crafts.
Other Countries
Traditional art sounds as if it should be primitive and folksy, but it applies to the arts of all nations, as California's Mingei Museum shows in its collection. The Mingei website shows that traditional art includes Chinese textiles, African bronzes, Middle Eastern rugs and even Iranian saddlebags. These all fit the definition of traditional art, even though some of the pieces might look exotic and sophisticated to American eyes.
Other Traditional Forms
The macmillanenglish.com website says traditional art also includes forms other than handmade objects, such as Japanese haiku poetry, English morris dancing and the traditional storytelling of Australian aborigines.
