The Louisiana Folklife Program is mandated to identify, document, present, and preserve Louisiana's folk artists, practitioners, communities, and landscapes. Conserving a living cultural tradition means encouraging and helping people and communities to carry on the best of their traditions, from Cajun music to blues and gospel, from deer-hide chair making to cypress basketweaving and wooden boatbuilding. This approach supports a cultural continuity that bridges Louisiana's past to its future. Conserving our folklife enriches the cultural life of all Louisianians, encourages pride in our many heritages, and stimulates diverse cottage industries in crafts and markets for traditional music.
Traditional cultures are also a key factor in attracting tourists to Louisiana.
The Creole State exhibit provides both preservation of the artifacts and cultural conservation in honoring and supporting the carriers of tradition. This exhibit originated at the 1984 Louisiana World Exposition in conjunction with the first Louisiana Folklife Festival, now an annual event taking place in Monroe. Field research is the heart of all Folklife Program activities, from advising a federal agency of the need to mitigate its impact on the culture of a fishing community to producing a folk festival or an exhibit such as this. Field research is conducted through the Louisiana Folklife Database using interview forms, cassette recordings, photograph, and video documentation. The Louisiana Folklife Database project houses information about folk artists who want to participate in public presentations and is a collaboration between the Louisiana Folklife Program and the Louisiana Folklife Center at Northwestern State University in Natchitoches.