Another posting from the 2018 New York State Fair. Visiting the fair, hosted at a dedicated fairgrounds in Syracuse, was an annual ritual for Pam and I until the 2020 pandemic. We miss it.
The Agricultural Society of the Six (Iroquois) Nations hosts a large area of booths, exhibits, Native American food service and this stage for dance demonstrations. It is called the “Indian Village.”
Click this link or any of the following three images for my online galleries.
Those unsightly black plastic enclosed somethings in the mid-foreground forced me to photograph performers only from the right stage margin, out of sight in this image.
I used a Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III with the Canon Lens EF 70-300 mm lens fitted with the Hoya UV filter.
Here are two shots of the fair crowds.
Click this link or any of the following two images for my online galleries.
The Indian Village, set among large trees, is a welcome refuge from the crowds.
We caught the 4pm native dance demonstration. The western sun was a dramatic highlight for some of the following shots.
For a larger image, click the photograph, a page will open and click it a second time.
Entrance
Smoke Dance
Female/Male Dance Competition
Master of Ceremonies Smoke Dance
Finale
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Michael Stephen Wills Photography 
The girl in yellow makes me want to hop into the image and dance with her!
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The care taken for the children…..her regalia and dancing were wonderful to see. 100% involvement.
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Nice. Love the movement in the dancers.
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Michael, I love these photos of the dancers, you capture a great sense of the dances in full action and the costumes are terrific. No wonder you miss it so much!
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Annika, Your comment made my day! Thank you for taking the time to read and share your thoughts. It’s readers like you that inspire me to continue sharing my ideas and experiences.
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NICE POST 💚💖💓
Blessed and Happy day 🌄
Greetings 👋🇪🇸
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I always wonder to what extent current renditions of old traditions remain true to the originals. Now that we have good video and audio recording technologies, future generations should have a pretty good idea of what our time was like (provided, of course, that the recordings survive).
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Hi Steve,
Thank you for sharing your insightful perspective! You raise an excellent point about the preservation of traditions through modern technology. It’s fascinating to think about how current renditions of old traditions evolve and adapt over time, and how our digital recordings might serve as a window into the present for future generations. It’s a reminder of the importance of documenting and preserving our cultural heritage. I’d love to hear more about your thoughts on this, especially given your own blogging experience.
Best,
Mike
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A few years ago it occurred to me that WordPress could suddenly go out of business at any time, as so many Internet companies have over the years. I slowly began making backups of my thousands of posts, and am now mostly caught up, though there’s still some to go.
The bigger problem is the longevity of digital records. Hard drives eventually fail. Solid-state storage eventually fails. A magnetic pulse can wipe out an archive, as can fires, floods, tornadoes, earthquakes, wars, etc. It remains to be seen whether digital records hold up as well over hundreds of years as some pieces of paper have.
One thing that hasn’t passed away is the old watchword that “This too shall pass away.”
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We’ve yet to improve upon a message chiseled in granite, a Rosetta Stone for the future.
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Thank you Michael. These photos filled with Native American culture take me back to Montana. In my early childhood, my Dad’s teaching journey took his young family of four boys to the Fort Peck Reservation in the northeastern region of the state.
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Hello BigSkyBuckeye,
Thank you so much for sharing your personal connection with the Native American culture. It’s wonderful to hear that the photos from the New York State Fair evoked memories of your childhood in Montana, especially your time on the Fort Peck Reservation. The rich heritage and traditions of Native American communities are indeed captivating and worth celebrating. I would love to hear more about your experiences and any stories you might have from those early years. Your perspective as someone who has lived within a reservation community would undoubtedly add depth to the understanding of this vibrant culture.
Warm regards,
Michael
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