Spector Family Foundation Launches New Craft Prize

The three-pronged initiative includes funding for early-career artists.

By Kasey Payette
January 30, 2026

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Photo courtesy of the Spector Craft Prize

Established and emerging artists in the craft field will convene at the first annual Spector Craft Summit at the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in November.

In 2025, the Spector Family Foundation—led by consultant and former fashion executive Abigail Klem Spector and her husband, businessman Warren Spector—launched the Spector Craft Prize, a new annual initiative to champion makers and invest in the future of American craft.

“In a world increasingly dominated by the virtual and mass-produced, the Spector Craft Prize restores focus to the material, the handmade, and the undeniably human story that runs through those works,” says Klem Spector.

The program includes three components. Each year, the Spector Craft Prize will be awarded to an established artist in recognition of their sustained commitment to furthering the craft field. In the fall, the Spector Craft Summit will convene awardees, artists, and the craft community for an intensive experience of dialogue and mentorship. The third prong of the initiative, the Spector Craft Prize for Emerging Artists, will recognize five exceptional early-career makers with a cash award and professional opportunities; it is accepting applications until March 1.

Photo courtesy of the Spector Craft Prize

Abigail Klem Spector and Warren Spector's Spector Family Foundation funds the new prize and convening.

The Spector Craft Prize for Emerging Artists is open to makers working in ceramics, textiles, wood, glass, metal, and paper arts who have been engaged in their studio practice for seven years or fewer. A jury of five notable figures in the craft field will select the winners. “We are particularly interested in finding people who are striking the right balance between tradition and innovation,” says jury chair Glenn Adamson, a scholar, historian, and curator of craft. “Craft has a double identity as a repository of generational knowledge and a driver of creative possibility, and we’re looking for emerging artists who reflect that complexity.”

Each winner will receive $10,000, plus mentorship opportunities, professional network development, and funds for travel to and participation in the Spector Craft Summit. The inaugural summit will be held at the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville, Arkansas, this November.

According to Adamson, an emphasis on community building and mentorship is the defining feature of the Spector Foundation’s three programs: The prize is structured so the main Spector Craft Prize winner, along with other influential summit attendees, will engage with the emerging artists in a mentorship capacity.

“Craft has never been more relevant or important,” says Adamson. “But that doesn’t mean it is an easy life. We want to do our part in strengthening the existing ecosystem and pathways for emerging talents.”

Photo courtesy of the Spector Craft Prize

Historian, curator, and author Glenn Adamson will chair the jury for the Spector Craft Prize for Emerging Artists.

Kasey Payette is a writer and editor based in Minneapolis.

Learn more about the Spector Craft Prize here.

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