Wisconsin Artist Awarded a 2003 National Heritage Fellowship

The Wisconsin Arts Board is delighted that Ron Poast, a traditional artist who we have recognized for a long time as a Wisconsin treasure has been honored with a National Heritage Fellowship by the National Endowment for the Arts. 

Placing his name in nomination for this award was the latest in a long series of opportunities the Arts Board has taken to share Ron Poast’s artistry with the world. In 1986 a fiddle of his was featured in the “From Hardanger to Harleys” Wisconsin folk art traveling exhibit produced in partnership with the John Michael Kohler Arts Center. Indeed his piece was part of the inspiration for the exhibit’s title.

In 1990, the Cedarburg Cultural Center with Arts Board support produced “In Tune With Tradition,” a traveling exhibit of Wisconsin folk musical instruments including a Poast fiddle. During the exhibit’s run, Down Home Dairyland, WAB’s folk music program on Wisconsin Public Radio, profiled Ron Poast and his work.

The 1992-93 State of Wisconsin Telephone Directory, a listing of thousands of state employees and their agencies, featured a photograph of a Poast Hardanger fiddle. It was one of the most popular covers in memory, receiving numerous compliments from the state and municipal employees who had it on their desks during the two year period.

In 1998 Ron Poast was a much appreciated participant in the Smithsonian Folklife Festival and the Wisconsin Folklife Festival, major events commemorating Wisconsin’s Sesquicentennial. He was one of the artists included in a Wisconsin Public Television documentary about the festivals.

In 2000 Ron had the opportunity to display his beautiful instruments at the Chiba People’s Days festival in Makuhari, Japan, part of a cultural exchange arranged by Wisconsin-Chiba, Inc., one of Wisconsin’s most active sister state organizations.

Because of his artistry and skill, Ron Poast has been honored numerous times but he remains a quiet and unassuming family man from the small town of Black Earth, Wisconsin. We congratulate him on receiving the National Heritage Fellowship and wish him well and much success in his artistic endeavors.

Date Posted: June 25, 2003
Contacts: Rick March, 608/266-2513