participant-type

: Craft School

The Groove Artspace, seen on an evening when we host live music and an art opening. We are creating a vibrant creative community in downtown Albuquerque, New Mexico. Photo by Erika Harding

The Groove Artspace is a multifaceted organization, including a teaching collaborative (with 15+ teachers offering a huge array of arts and crafts classes), studios for working artists and artisans, a gallery offering monthly exhibits and a non-profit arm managing our community outreach and education work.  We have a strong focus on glass and mosaic, but our work encompasses all forms of handwork and artistic creation.

Albuquerque,
NM
Arts/Cultural Organization Craft School Gallery
Clay Fiber Glass Metal Mixed Media Other Paper Wood
A group of summer residents gather on the kiln pad. Georgia Howe

The Watershed Center for the Ceramic Arts is a dynamic nexus for artists who create with clay, offering time, space, and deep creative connection. Since 1986, Watershed has championed artists at every career stage through internationally recognized residencies that prioritize community, collaboration, and artistic exploration. On our rural Maine campus, artists work side-by-side in an open-concept studio, forging lasting bonds and pushing the boundaries of their practice in dialogue with one another and with the surrounding coastal landscape.

Our peer-to-peer, artist-organized residency model creates an environment where complicated ideas are valued, innovation is championed, and creative vision expands. Beyond residencies, Watershed enriches the broader community through professional development workshops for K–12 educators, public programs and artist talks, ceramic exhibitions in our Edgecomb gallery, and the beloved annual Salad Days festival. Watershed is a place where artists come to be inspired and leave transformed.

Edgecomb,
ME
Arts/Cultural Organization Craft School Gallery
Clay
Close up of a yellow-hot piece of steel on an anvil being hit by a hammer. Hoot scale is flying off. The smith is in a leather apron and a leather glove on their stock hand. Martha Benedict

Our mission at Adam’s Forge is to provide a safe, inclusive, diverse, accessible and thriving community where people of all ages and backgrounds can share in the traditions, knowledge, and artistry of blacksmithing, metal arts and other creative handcrafts across generations and into the future.

The magic of iron is in everyone’s blood.

Adam’s Forge provides hands on classes in artistic blacksmithing, related metal arts and creative handcrafts. We offer space, tools and expertise to aspiring artists. We provide demonstrations and speakers for public events and meetings. We support a vibrant artistic blacksmithing community with outreach to our surrounding Southern and Central California community.

Founded in honor of metal artist Adam Leventhal, our blacksmithing and multimedia art studio in Simi Valley connects our past while forging our future.  We offer classes to complete beginners and those looking to build advanced skills. In our supportive environment, students learn time-honored techniques while discovering their own creative path.

As Southern California’s premier center for metalworking education, we are uniquely positioned to bridge traditional craftsmanship with contemporary artistic innovation — creating opportunities that are notably limited in the SoCal arts landscape. We currently offer over 240 classes in bladesmithing, blacksmithing, metalsmithing, metalworking, bronze casting, copper working and jewelry making.

Simi Valley,
CA
Arts/Cultural Organization Craft School
Fiber Metal Wood
Graham McKay, Executive Director of Lowell's Boat Shop, speaking at the stern of our big project of 2025–2026, a 38' Bantry Bay Gig for Atlantic Challenge USA. We are a working museum, continuing to build new traditional plank-on-frame boats for clients. Anne Bryant, righthandanne.com

Established in 1793, Lowell’s Boat Shop is the oldest continuously operating boat shop in the United States and is cited as the birthplace of the legendary fishing dory. Lowell’s is the only remaining survivor of Amesbury’s world-renowned dory manufacturing industry that produced in excess of a quarter of a million dories over a period of two centuries. We are a National Historic Landmark.

In its third century of operation, Lowell’s Boat Shop is both a working boat shop and a museum, and the preservation of each part is essential to our mission. We continue to build dories and skiffs for clients in the time-honored tradition of seven generations of the Lowell family that owned and operated the Boat Shop. The rich history of the building, collections, and our role in the community are conveyed through woodworking classes, our Apprentice program, programming for local schools, lively social gatherings, partnerships with other local museums, our YouTube channel, and the fleet of watercraft available for members who row their river.

Amesbury,
MA
Craft School Museum Other
Wood
Resident Building at South Bear School - the "Old Aase Haugen Home". Marguerite Schwarz

South Bear School is a Fine Arts Folk School in rural Northeast Iowa, committed to passing on the skills and artistic values set down by the Bauhaus and previous artistic masters of that legacy.

Throughout the year, South Bear hosts arts, nature, and cultural events such as music fests, makers markets, studio tours and film showings.

The school’s mission is to teach students the life skills of fine arts, appreciation of nature’s beauty and artistic value, and foster community connection, while also giving students the freedom to branch out and develop their personal artistic vocabulary.

South Bear stands apart for its commitment to tradition, its inspiring natural setting, and its vibrant community of artists and learners. Our lineage traces back to Marguerite Wildenhain and the Bauhaus movement, and before that a lineage of 500 years of the German Potters’ Guild system.

South Bear maintains a profound respect for craftsmanship and functional beauty.

Decorah,
IA
Arts/Cultural Organization Craft School
Clay Fiber Mixed Media Other
Pilchuck Glass School is where the glass world comes together. Photo courtesy of Pilchuck Glass School

Pilchuck Glass School is an international center for glass art education. Our serene campus in Stanwood, Washington, is nestled in the foothills of the Cascade Mountains amidst a working tree farm.

From May through September every year, Pilchuck’s progam offers a series of courses as well as residencies for established artists in all media. Summer sessions vary in length and offer concurrent courses in a variety of glassworking processes for artists of all skill levels. Small workshops taught by world-renowned artists emphasize experimentation and teamwork while fostering individual initiative and expression.

Pilchuck also offers residences for both emerging and established artists during the fall and spring.

New and experienced artists alike often make tremendous conceptual and artistic progress in their short time at Pilchuck. Combining a deep focus on glass, access to a variety of resources, a picturesque Pacific Northwest setting and an ever-expanding international community of artists, Pilchuck has become the most comprehensive educational center in the world for glass artists.

Stanwood,
WA
Craft School
Glass
Potters John Perry and Judi Munn have created, taught and shared their unique styles of pottery at the Ozark Folk Center State Park for more than 20 years. Kirk Jordan

The Craft Village at the Ozark Folk Center State Park is a community of working artisans dedicated to showcasing the Ozark craft traditions of the past, present, and future.

Open from March through November, the village is a place where craftspeople focus on creating, demonstrating, and selling their unique handmade items. Visitors can witness the daily production of high-quality functional art, from pottery and knife making to wood carving and printing. This active working environment supports a rare level of artistic freedom, allowing artisans to earn a living directly from their talent and passion.

While the primary focus is on creation and sales, the village honors its original vision as a teaching center. Classes and apprenticeships are available for those with the aptitude and desire to learn these traditional skills. The Craft Village remains a supportive community that values hard work and welcomes all to experience and appreciate the beauty of Ozark craftsmanship.

Mountain View,
AR
Arts/Cultural Organization Craft School
Clay Fiber Glass Metal Mixed Media Other Paper Wood
Aerial image of the Appalachian Center for Craft featuring its beautiful location surround by pristine hills covered in autumn colored trees and the surrounding Center Hill Lake. TN Tech University Photographic Services

The Appalachian Center for Craft is a unique state-of-the-art educational facility and cultural center combining teaching, research, cultural outreach and crafts marketing all operating in partnership. The Center operates academic programs, workshops, outreach programs and exhibitions and sales galleries as well as facilities for meetings and conferences.

The Center exists at a crossroads between urban and rural, academic and folk, high art and domestic life. Born of the vision and initiative of the people of TN and a group of remarkable advocates for fine craft, the Center opened in December of 1979. The complex was originally developed by the TN Arts Commission and funded by the Appalachian Regional Commission, and is now a division of TN Tech University.

Spectacularly located in Middle TN on the Highland Rim of the Cumberland Plateau, on the wilderness tract overlooking Center Hill Lake, the Center’s facilities are spacious and well equipped. The location was chosen with both regional and national service in mind, centrally placed in the U.S., in the middle of a rich Appalachian craft tradition. The wilderness setting is ideal for total immersion in the educational programs, and yet the location offers easy access from around the U.S.

This fusion of traditional crafts and creative education reaches from the grass roots to the international craft world. The Appalachian Center for Craft is a vital expression of the rich contribution of the unique character of Tennessee.

Smithville,
TN
Craft School Gallery University or College
Clay Fiber Glass Metal Wood
Lillstreet Art Center. Image Courtesy of Lillstreet Art Center

Lillstreet Art Center is an art school, art gallery, and artist studio space in Chicago, Illinois. We offer classes and workshops in Ceramics, Metalsmithing & Jewelry, Textiles, Printmaking, Digital, and Drawing & Painting. Founded in 1975, Lillstreet is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year!

We provide a creative retreat from the noisy world around us, where you can relax, find inspiration, enjoy meditative creative time, make friends, and reach your artistic goals. We foster a community where artists of all backgrounds, ages, and skill levels can learn together. We promise good vibes in the studio and a supportive space to explore your practice and learn new skills.

Through our annual Artist-in-Residence program, we offer career opportunities and workspace for emerging to mid-career artists. We remove barriers to art education through our growing Scholarship Programs and Free Visiting Artist Program. We are committed to giving back to the art community and beyond, with a portion of our profits going to local humanitarian organizations monthly.

Chicago,
IL
Arts/Cultural Organization Craft School Gallery
Clay Fiber Metal Mixed Media Other Paper
Power Hammer Hack Being Used. Center for Metal Arts

The mission of Center for Metal Arts is to maintain a high-quality educational forging program, providing the best equipped facility deeply rooted in the traditions and history of this craft, reaching and serving the broadest possible audience of artists, craftspeople and students in the U.S. and abroad. Core to this mission is the preservation through use of the historic Cambria Iron Company facilities in Johnstown, Pennsylvania.

Center for Metal Arts offers beginner through advanced forging workshops in our state-of-the-art facilities and provides specialized tools and equipment for each student. Our workshops vary in length of time from weekend, one-week, two-week, to six-week long workshops and we frequently run private lessons. We are confident with the variety of topics, levels, and lengths of our workshops there is a class for everyone interested in forging.

Johnstown,
PA
Craft School
Metal
Student Bre '28 with the handmade Squiggle Broom. Bre, like so many students was randomly assigned a Labor Position within the Broom shop as a first year student. Now a sophomore Bre has become an integral part of the studio. Sean Hall '25 and Evy Medley '25

Berea College’s Student Craft program exists as part of the college’s Labor Program and is not part of a degree program. In addition to providing a tuition-free liberal arts education to all students, Berea College provides every student a work position. One hundred students have positions in Student Craft, where they learn about craft from start to finish, engaging in production, achieving quality control, selecting materials, managing deadlines and collaborating on design.

Craft students arrive with a wide variety of creative skills and experiences. Some have significant experience gained from family members, school, or community programs; others have their first formal exposure to a design-education experience after they arrive. Regardless of students’ background or academic major, staff provide them with the education, skills and tools needed to engage in the design and creation of hand-crafted objects in five areas: Weaving, Woodcraft, Broomcraft, Ceramics and Outreach. In addition, Student Craft supports fellowship and artist-in-residence programs and classes given by the Woodworking School at Pine Croft that spread the College’s commitment to craft beyond the Berea College community.  All of these elements combine to make Student Craft an offering like no other.

Berea,
KY
Craft School University or College
Clay Fiber Other Wood
Baltimore Jewelry Center Logo, blue outline of an anvil with circular sound waves raditing off of it. Elliot Keeley

The Baltimore Jewelry Center is an educational nonprofit building a vibrant creative community for the study and practice of metalsmithing and art jewelry.

We educate and inspire new and established artists, as well as promote metalsmithing and art jewelry to the general public through exhibitions, community and educational outreach.

We envision Baltimore reconnected to its rich history of metalsmithing and jewelry, valuing contemporary art jewelry and metalsmithing as visual art forms and craft.

New generations of metalsmiths and art jewelers will preserve and evolve the field through practice and education.

Baltimore,
MD
Arts/Cultural Organization Craft School Gallery
Metal
Students at WCW with Larissa Huff. Ken Page

We envision the Wendell Castle Workshop (WCW) as an internationally significant organization celebrating the intersection of art, woodworking, and furniture design by educating the public about Wendell Castle, teaching skills inspired by his work, and encouraging makers and designers to keep his legacy alive through their own practice. Located in Castle’s former studio, the WCW is a creative hub where people come from around the globe to learn, create, and connect.

Our mission is to provide classes and resources to help people experience and expand the creative legacy of Wendell Castle.

Scottsville,
NY
Arts/Cultural Organization Craft School
Metal Wood
Yucca Valley Material Lab Art Studio. Image courtesy YVML

Yucca Valley Material Lab (YVML) is a nonprofit arts organization committed to hands-on making, material experimentation, and meaningful exchange. Through residencies, workshops, and public programming, we support underrepresented artists while cultivating an inclusive creative ecosystem rooted in collaboration, discovery, and shared knowledge.

We do this work because we believe art shapes a world worth living in.

We envision a future where arts education is accessible to all, where risk and experimentation are celebrated, and where artists are supported not just as makers, but as leaders, collaborators, and catalysts for change.

Yucca Valley,
CA
Arts/Cultural Organization Craft School
Fiber Glass Metal Mixed Media Paper Wood
Enriching lives through art and craft - Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts

Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts is a nationally recognized center for craft education and creative exploration. Located in the heart of the Great Smoky Mountains, Arrowmont offers a wide range of workshops, residencies, and gallery exhibitions to inspire creativity and foster community.

Gatlinburg,
TN
Arts/Cultural Organization Craft School
Clay Fiber Glass Metal Mixed Media Other Paper Wood