Reimagining the Craft School Experience: Haystack’s 2021 Virtual Programs
Haystack Mountain School of Crafts is redefining what it means to make craft education accessible. In a groundbreaking announcement in early 2021, the Haystack team shared their decision to reimagine the craft school experience they have offered since 1950 in a completely new format, with all of their programming available virtually and free to the public for the entirety of the 2021 season. And this innovative season is just the beginning.
Running from April through October, Haystack will feature six full months of artist talks and guest lectures, two groups of unique 6-week workshops on Writing and Mentorship & Collaboration, and a host of additional panels and classes with craft professionals ranging from renowned artists and craft historians, to community organizers and interdisciplinary creatives doing vibrant work in the craft field. The programming is robust, and includes a dynamic combination of household craft names like Glenn Adamson and Jenni Sorkin, as well as new voices like Myron Beasley and Tiffany Momon—showcasing a breadth of craft discourse rarely seen or experienced elsewhere: let alone free of charge and accessible with merely the power of an internet connection.
As an young artist, craft historian, and self-proclaimed craft nerd, Haystack’s virtual programming is exciting to me on a personal level—after all, craft history coursework can be hard to come by; it is all too often relegated to a single art history seminar or a footnote in a studio art class. In many cases, craft enthusiasts are left to their own devices to seek out knowledge of craft history, traditions, and discourse through books, magazines like Metalsmith and American Craft, and similar methods of independent study. But beyond a personal enthusiasm for the craft programming in Haystack’s schedule, this initiative is representative of a shift of much greater significance: forward movement towards democratization and expansion of the craft field. The domino effect of this programming decision remains to be seen, but one thing is certain: the methodology behind the choice indicates (and also invites) promising leadership and new perspectives on education and stewardship of the field.
Beyond the obvious necessity of the pivot to virtual programming due to the Covid-19 pandemic, I was curious about what led the Haystack team to take the plunge on a new model of maintaining and expanding their community. In a phone interview with Haystack’s Executive Director Paul Sacaridiz (he/him) last week, I got the opportunity to ask him first hand about how the staff built a framework for the 2021 Season. While acknowledging the fact that lockdown required a change in approach, Sacaridiz offered a different perspective: that the pandemic’s necessitation of change also brought a unique opportunity to evaluate Haystack’s mission in a new context, and engage with its existing community—and the greater global art and craft community—in new ways.
An aerial shot of Haystack’s campus in Deer Isle, Maine. Image courtesy of Haystack website.
Under “normal” (read: pre-pandemic) circumstances, Haystack’s scholarship endowment helps to fund over 125 scholarships and fellowships for in-person study; rather than keeping the campus closed for another season and leave that endowment unused, the funds were reallocated to pay the over 100 faculty on the the 2021 season’s roster, and also enabled them to make all of the programming available free of charge. Funding amounts that might previously support one student’s two-week stay would now be able to support countless students’ attendance free of charge. While, of course, an in-person craft school experience is made no less valuable by this decision, the accessibility that this monetary support provides in the virtual model is nothing short of phenomenal.
When asked to elaborate on the intention behind this accessibility initiative in the scope of Haystack’s overall mission, Sacaridiz cited three major drivers behind the choice to go virtual: removing barriers of access to Haystack (and craft education as whole); expanding its reach and the field itself; and attracting students who had never been to Haystack’s campus before. Treating myself as a case study, I can attest to the fact that these goals are already being met: as I am currently based in rural Maryland, it’s exciting for me to be able to participate in Haystack’s courses and lectures, despite being over 650 miles from their idyllic campus in Deer Isle, Maine.
Haystack’s campus in Deer Isle, Maine. Image courtesy of Haystack website.
As we begin to see so many cultural institutions reopening to full capacity, it also begs the question: what might the future of this virtual programming be? Is the newfound accessibility afforded by the work-from-home lifestyle over the past year destined to be merely a pit stop on a trajectory aiming solely for return to the “before time”? At least for Haystack, the framework they’ve unveiled this season is designed to be far from a fluke. When asked about what he expects of the future seasons at Haystack, and how their ongoing commitment to equity and accessibility might take shape in their future plans, Sacaridiz explained that Haystack’s new framework was built with intention and eyes on the future: the program was designed to be fully scalable. While this year’s programming represents an expansive and robust schedule of fully virtual offerings, future seasons at Haystack will see a return of their on-campus workshop intensives, bolstered by ongoing virtual programming that will continue to extend Haystack’s reach and invite more people into the conversation.
Beyond the changes in format, the content itself is also an exciting departure for Haystack. Rather than simply attempting to replicate the quality of an in-person technique- or material-base workshop digitally (admittedly an uphill battle), the Haystack team chose to focus on content that could fully embrace a virtual format, rather than fighting against it.
“Instead of focusing on the how, we wanted to focus on the what and the why,” Sacaridiz explained.
Curious about what the selection of this programming looked like behind the scenes, Sacaridiz outlined their process: in the months spent thoughtfully building the season, Haystack staff examined the intangible aspects of the craft school experience that make each student’s stay uniquely memorable. Beyond the studio experience, what takeaways are most powerful, and how might they be distilled for a virtual visitor? Sacaridiz aptly compared this deconstruction to the process of unraveling the individual threads in a piece of cloth—critical conversations and discussions of craft represented one thread; artist talks, another; collaborative work and networking, a third; and so on. These categories became the jumping off point for building out six months of free programs for the 2021 season. Combined with the wide-ranging talent and diverse topics woven throughout the season, each month’s schedule has something exciting to offer.
Another image of Haystack's campus, illuminated at night. Image courtesy of Haystack website.
After visiting the Haystack website multiple times over the past several weeks—and shamelessly registering for eight programs and counting—I couldn’t resist asking Sacaridiz what he, personally, was most excited about among the upcoming programs. (As the Executive Director, it was unsurprising to find out that he is enthusiastic about all of the program offerings.) Before sharing the category of programming that he is particularly looking forward to, he emphasized that the departure from medium-specific content is one of the most intriguing prospects of the new initiative for him. He then told me that he’s most anticipating the Craft History programs in the upcoming months. I was quick to agree (especially since more than half of the events I’ve pre-registered for fall into this category).
My final question concerned the future of the craft field more broadly: how does he hope this initiative will impact the future of craft school education outside of Haystack? Sacaridiz’s response was simple: he hopes that the steps his team has taken will contribute to the democratization of craft education. Returning to his earlier thoughts on the pandemic shift providing a unique opportunity for re-evaluation, he highlighted the value of answering the question: “in a field that is always moving forward, what does it mean to truly pause, reflect, and re-evaluate?” Haystack’s self-reflections invite other institutions to do the same.
The potential in this new direction is seemingly unlimited, and imagining this as the inaugural year of a new frontier in craft education is an exciting concept. As we wrapped up our phone conversation, Sacaridiz offered one final thought about the trajectory of the program in the scope of a potentially post-pandemic world: that there is no going back. In a single year, so much has profoundly changed, but in the case of the craft field, that can bring something exciting.
My mind has lingered on the truth of that assertion for days after our conversation. The past year has been filled with uncertainty, in the art field and in the world as a whole—there is undoubtedly more uncertainty to come, but with institutions like Haystack leading the way, the future feels bright.
Special thanks to Haystack Mountain School of Craft’s Executive Director, Paul Sacaridiz, for his time and generosity in speaking with me about Haystack’s exciting new programming. To learn more about Haystack’s Mission Statement and learn more about their history click here. You can read about Haystack’s robust Equity Initiatives here.
Article written by Jackie Andrews, in response to a phone interview with Executive Director Paul Sacaridiz, conducted by Jackie Andrews. Information about programming schedule and all accompanying images provided by Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, courtesy of their website.
This essay was originally written and published by Jackie Andrews in May 2021 for Power Clash Art, an experimental publishing platform they co-founded. Power Clash Art in operation from June 2020-2021.
Please note, this piece has been shortened for the purposes of this archive post. The original piece included a round-up of several virtual programs hosted by Haystack, including lectures by renowned craft historians, scholars, makers and activists: Dr. Tiffany N. Momon, Glenn Adamson, Jenni Sorkin, M. Rachael Arauz, Sara Clugage, and Sonya Clark. The above piece consists only of the body text, featuring quotes from Paul Sacaridiz.