The Dartmouth Cultural Center’s newest exhibition may focus on fiction, but the work itself owes an indispensable debt to history.

Each piece in the collaborative “Folks and Fables” collection contains a little piece of the past: for Dan Cadoret, that comes in the form of antique frames that surround each of his narrative paintings; Mary Ellen Flinn, on the other hand, incorporates antique objects into her sculptures, such as a paintbrush acting as a witch’s broom. 

The entire collection, which began its run at the Cultural Center Oct. 6, celebrates folktales and fables, most from American history. 

“We both have admired each other’s work for some time,” Flinn said. “It just seemed like the natural thing to do, our work goes very well together.”

Despite their similar interests, the pair of Rhode Island residents never collaborated before this exhibition. In gearing up for the show, they spent the last year working both independently and together. At times, the two would help find inspiration for one another: “I might find an element, she might find a frame,” Cadoret said. 

While Cadoret said his work has sometimes been referred to as “folk art” or “naive art,” neither label felt right. Instead, he refers to his work as “story painting.”

Cadoret’s interest in stories stretches back to his childhood, he said, when he would paint illustrations to go along with books he read.

After a lifetime of painting, Cadoret is always looking for new inspiration. Working with Flinn, he said, gave him a “different view,” though he discovered that he and Flinn’s creative approach is actually very similar. 

Flinn is a “student of early American folk art,” she said, which inspired her to get into carving in the first place: “It just naturally led to folks and fables.”

Some of Flinn and Cadoret’s works are in conversation with each other. For instance, one of Flinn’s sculptures depicts the brick house (made of an old factory mold) from the story of “The Three Little Pigs.” Nearby, Cadoret’s painting “Safe Haven” shows a similar scene, with the wolf darting by in the background and the pigs enjoying a domestic life in the foreground.

Another collaborative easter egg: Cadoret painted the pig’s portrait inside Flinn’s brick house. 

Cultural Center president Pauline Santos called the exhibit “totally different” than anything the center has hosted before.

Flinn and Cadoret’s work will remain on display at the Cultural Center until Nov. 4. The center is open Thursday through Saturday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.