Craft Around the Country

A New Kentucky Residency Offers Space for Exploration and Dialogue

The new short-term artist-in-residence program at Berea College Student Craft welcomes working craftspeople.

By Robert Alan Grand
March 18, 2026

Digital Only

Craft industry

Education

Free To Read

Photo by Justin Skeens and Sean Hall, courtesy of Berea College Student Craft

Atlanta chairmaker Robell Awake in Berea College Student Craft's studio space.

Located in central Kentucky, Berea College, founded in 1855, is the oldest integrated and coeducational higher-learning institution in the South and has been tuition-free since 1892. Students work 10 to 15 hours a week at campus jobs to offset housing and meal costs. In the school’s Student Craft program, approximately 100 students a year learn craft skills alongside their pursuit of degrees in areas such as business administration and biology.

Several changes have occurred in Student Craft recently, marking a new chapter for the 133-year-old program and helping it earn Cooper Hewitt’s National Design Award for product design in February.

“Eight years ago, 95 percent of what Berea Student Craft made was what I would describe as historical or heritage objects, many of which had been made for between 50 and 90 years,” says Aaron Beale, associate vice president of Berea’s Student Craft program.

Today, though, that percentage has been flipped, with goods like woven rainbow baby blankets, squiggle-handled brooms, electric wooden banjos, and two-tone ceramic bowls being, as Aaron describes, “designed by the students themselves or with their strong, direct input.”

Photos by Justin Skeens and Sean Hall, courtesy of Berea College Student Craft

Max Hendry works on a twisty broom.

Another new effort, Student Craft’s Artist-in-Residence Program, is quietly growing too. Launched in 2023 and funded by the Maxwell/Hanrahan Foundation, the initiative provides short-term residencies—typically lasting one to two weeks—for craftspeople from across the country. Previous residents include Robell Awake, Charlie Ryland, Beth Ireland, Jasmine Best, and Tali Weinberg.

Beale describes it as a “true residency,” where craftspeople work independently—on their own schedule and at their own pace—using Student Craft’s studios and specialized equipment. The program also encourages ongoing dialogue with students, staff, and the community. Ireland, a veteran woodworker, has been providing students with ideas and feedback for their campus printmaking club and plans to bring a group of influential woodworkers to Berea later this spring.

The Artist-in-Residence program strives to bring visibility to craft practices beyond the campus’ historic work culture while echoing the college’s ethos by offering artists honorariums, free accommodations near campus, and a flexible short-term schedule intended to support working artists who can’t commit to intensive programs.

Woodworker Beth Ireland and Student Craft Director of Woodcraft Rob Speice.

Beale acknowledges that the application process is still informal at this early stage; he encourages interested makers to email him for information. The selection process is democratic, with the 10-person Student Craft staff making decisions collectively when looking for an artist who has produced a compelling body of work and has a rich experience to share.

“We want our students to see what’s possible professionally,” Beale says of the program’s potential impact. “Many of them have reached the conclusion that they’re supposed to know what they’re going to be doing when they’re 40 years old when they’re 20 years old.”

“Nine out of the 10 of us who work here in Student Craft have walked the craziest twisting paths that you can imagine. The same is true for many of the artists in residence who come through here. We want students to see there are many different ways to be happy, successful, and make a contribution to the world.”

Photos by Justin Skeens and Sean Hall, courtesy of Berea College Student Craft

Quilter Aaliyah Bonnette.

Robert Alan Grand is a writer and photographer based in Asheville, North Carolina. He received the 2025 Andy Warhol Foundation Arts Writers Grant to cover contemporary art in southern and central Appalachia.

Learn more about Berea Student Craft’s Artist-in-Residence program here.

Website

This article was made possible with support from the Windgate Foundation.

Before you go!

We believe that making creates a meaningful world, and we hope you do, too. Deeply researched and impactful journalism on the craft community is in short supply. At the same time, being featured in craft-centered media and articles can have a major effect on a maker’s or artist’s livelihood, particularly those who are just starting in their career. You can help support our mission and the work of makers around the country by becoming a member or by making a gift today.

Thank you!
American Craft Council

Join Donate