Haystack Mountain School of Crafts

08/11/2026

From the very beginning, the founders of Haystack believed that a place for artists to explore new ideas, learn new skills, and share the joys and the challenges of a life in craft was not only possible, but an imperative. ✨

In the intervening 75 years, Haystack has established itself as an invaluable part of the ecosystem for craft education, serving artists from across the world and just down the road.

In honor of our diamond anniversary, we ask you to consider making a donation today to meet our goal of $75,000 in new or additional gifts to the Haystack Annual Fund. And thanks to the pledge of an anonymous donor, the first $25,000 will be matched to help us meet this challenge!

We may not have the opportunity to found a school of craft ourselves, but we all share in an opportunity to sustain one. Your generosity and dedication to our community are what ensure the success of Haystack and the future of craft.

🩵💛 Donate online: https://secure.lglforms.com/form_engine/s/RdIRqgNY1Opo-aGpAJ62QQ?t=1786466997

07/30/2026

The 1970s were a decade marked by significant societal shifts in the United States, and like other educational institutions, Haystack was a place for cultural meetings and explorations of these complexities.

Haystack tackled global issues by making significant connections with the wider world through a series of thematic sessions that catalyzed conversations about how national identity and cultures of community shaped ideas about craft.

The early 1970s saw focused sessions on British, German, African, Dutch, Japanese, and Native American cultures of craft. Through these special cultural sessions, Haystack aimed to develop relationships with the international craft world and with Black and Native craftspeople in the US by offering them a site for exchange, experimentation, and learning.

Some additional notable milestones in the School’s second decade include:

➡️ In 1970, George Greenamyer constructed the now iconic bell tower after realizing the hand bell used to notify participants of mealtimes (donated by Penland School of Craft) couldn’t be heard across campus.
➡️ In 1978, founding Director Fran Merritt retired, and Howard Evans was chosen as his successor.
➡️ The Gateway Auditorium was built in 1979.
➡️ In 1979, Heikki Seppä’s metalforming workshop built and installed the sculpture on the side of the Metals studio, which consists of about 250 brass closed-seam spicules that were made by the class.

We hope you enjoy these photos from our archival materials, and that you’ll follow along as we highlight each of Haystack’s seven decades throughout the summer!



📸 1: A ceramics workshop taught by Dr. Abashiya Magaj Ahuwan during the African Sessions. Photo by Richard Clive Saunders for Topic Magazine, 1974.

📸 2: Participants in the dining hall during the African Sessions. Photo by Richard Clive Saunders for Topic Magazine, 1974.

📸 3: Fiber participants weave on the deck. Photo by Cate F**t, 1970s.

📸 4: Participants grill hamburgers on Picnic Rock. Photo by Cate F**t, 1970s.

📸 5: A group of participants gathers for discussion in the Wood studio, 1971.

📸 6: Founding Director Fran Merritt leaves a painted foot impression, 1971.

📸 7: Glass sculptures by Dale Chihuly on site in the Haystack woods, 1971.

📸 8: 1974 African Sessions group photo courtesy of Joyce J. Scott papers, 1914-2019, bulk 1970s-2000s. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

📸 9: Heikki Seppä, photo courtesy of Karen Jordan Good, 1979.

📸 10: Film still of the bell tower installation, video courtesy of George Greenamyer, 1970s.

07/27/2026

Timelapse: Haystack Hotshop turnover edition🔥

Between the end of Session 3 and the start of Session 4, the Hotshop transforms from ironworking to glassblowing thanks to many helping hands.

Shoutout to our small but incredibly mighty studio team for making this heavy lift look easy: Mia Sartori, Brad Willis, and Anna Lehner, as well as our campus assistants Izzie and Sea! ❤️‍🔥

07/27/2026

Calling all Mainers - applications are now live for Open Door 2026! 🍂

Running from Friday, October 9 - Monday, October 12, Open Door offers Maine residents seven incredible workshops with established artists from across the country, designed for all skill levels and backgrounds.

Whether you’re a beginner or an experienced craftsperson, this is a great opportunity to learn craft at Haystack to close out our 75th season!

⚒️ BLACKSMITHING
Shawn Lovell (she/her) | Forging Kitchen Tools: Spoons, Spatulas + Hooks

🏺 CERAMICS
Frank Zhu (he/him) Frank Zhu | Breaking the Confines of the Wheel

🤖 FAB LAB
Kimberly Lyle (she/her) Kimberly Lyle | 3D Printing with Bio-Based Materials

🪡 FIBER
Carly Owens Weiss (she/her) CARLY OWENS WEISS | Encrusted: Explorations in Contemporary Bead Embroidery

🖼️ GRAPHICS
Ashley Page (she/her) Ashley Page! | Papercoated: Sculptural Papermaking

💠 METALS
Venetia Dale (she/her) Vene(tia) Dale | Fiber Techniques and Metal

🪵 WOOD
Fredy Huaman Mallqui (he/him) Fredy Huaman| Hand Wood Carving

The application deadline is Friday, August 14, so don’t wait! Full workshop descriptions and info on how to apply is available on our website: https://www.haystack-mtn.org/open-door

*NOTE: Given the interest in this program, Haystack accepts people based on a lottery system and is open to Maine residents age 18 and over who reside in the state for more than 9 months of the year.*

07/15/2026

Last Friday night was an unforgettable evening ✨

Over 100 guests gathered on the decks and in the dining hall of the Haystack campus for our annual Summer Benefit dedicated to the early founders of Haystack, a group of Maine craftspeople—primarily Edgar and Marjorie Sewell, Elizabeth Crawford, and William and Estelle Shevis—as well as benefactor Mary Beasom Bishop, who offered generous and sustaining support, and Francis Sumner Merritt and Priscilla Merritt, who served as co-directors in the School’s first summer, with Fran Merritt assuming the sole role of director, providing extraordinary vision and direction for Haystack until he retired from the directorship in 1977.

We enjoyed live music and delicious food, and lifted auction paddles in support of Haystack’s facilities and programs, raising nearly $135,000 in total. We are overwhelmed by the generosity of this community!⁠
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✨THANK YOU✨ to everyone who came out to support Haystack’s mission of connecting people through craft - as well as those of you who supported but could not join in person. We wouldn’t be able to do the work we do without all of you!⁠
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We are also thankful to Alleghany Meadows (), a former Haystack trustee, who generously donated a set of nesting bowls from his “Flora” series for the auction.

We are sending an extra special thank you to the Haystack Kitchen for the incredibly delicious food; to Phelan Gallagher, Peter Kerlin, and Treyon Nelson for the tunes; to Wallace Events () for the rentals; to Blue Hill Wine Shop () for the wine; to Periwinkle Flowers () for the beautiful flowers; and to Nikolai Fox () for capturing the evening.

07/14/2026

“My belief in the transformative potential of art and craft is only being more and more invigorated.”

During Session 1, Visiting Artist Antonius-Tín Bui () brought a generous energy to the campus, setting the tone for an incredible summer. They hosted one-on-one tarot readings, led movement workshops, and co-produced a fashion show showcasing the garments created in the Session 1 Fiber studio alongside Rachael Levine and Diana Kennedy.

Antonius-Tín Bui (they/them) is a polydisciplinary artist and shapeshifter invested in the transformative potential of improvisation, portraiture, craft, and ritual. A monsoon in a past life, they see themself most in movement—in wind, in the shifting blues of the sky, in the quiet sway between presence and disappearance. “Antonius-Tín” is just one of many names unearthed thus far. Indigo, Monsoon, MiuMiu, Umami, and Sky are some others. The child of Paul and Van Bui, two Vietnamese refugees who carved futures from grief and grit, Antonius-Tín carries their legacy in every gesture. Their work honors the spectral, the tender, and the unruly—crafting portals for what cannot be named, only felt, only danced with ancestral shadow.

07/12/2026

In case you missed it… thank you for highlighting the role of craft in Maine, Maine Calling! It was a pleasure to be in conversation with Maine Crafts Association and Center for Furniture Craftsmanship!

We highlight Maine craftspeople and learn how craft has helped shape Maine's culture and economy