Folk Art is a broad subject encompassing a variety of art forms from every period in American history. It includes paintings (portraits, landscapes, genre scenes), sculpture (weathervanes, whirligigs, carousel horses), textiles (quilts, needlework, coverlets), furniture, pottery, decorative arts, and architecture.

The Museum of American Folk Art is the leading urban center of folk art scholarship in the nation. And the Eva and Morris Feld Gallery Branch at Lincoln Square is the hub of many of the Museum's activities, including exhibitions from its impressive permanent collection and changing exhibits; crafts demonstrations; performances by folk musicians, dancers, and storytellers; and full educational programming for adults and children.

A few representative (previous) titles of the Museum's excellent exhibitions include Revisiting Ammi Phillips: Fifty Years of American Portraiture; Northern Scenes: Hooked Art of the Grenfell Mission; and New York Beauties: Quilts from the Empire State. There are about 14 different exhibitions per year, many of which are accompanied by lectures and symposia related to the works on view.

The Folk Art Institute, a 36-credit educational program, offers lectures and hands-on workshops on folk art related topics. It also hosts the New York University Graduate Program of Folk Art Studies.

For School Groups the Museum offers Guided Tours and Programs done in conjunction with current exhibitions. Programs begin with a comprehensive information package for teachers that includes pre-visit and post-visit materials to help students get the most out of their lessons. Activities may enhance such diverse subjects as Social Studies, History, English, Home Economics, Industrial Arts, and Art. Museum tours for school groups take about an hour.