Harlan Boss Artists

With support from the Harlan Boss Foundation for the Arts, ACC provides financial and professional development resources to early career craft artists residing in Minnesota who are Black, Indigenous, or Persons of Color (BIPOC) or otherwise historically underrepresented. This initiative enriches our regional community by fostering sustainable craft-centered careers.

Meet the awardees.

Selected artists receive underwritten participation in our American Craft Fest St. Paul event, financial stipend to offset costs and support their practice, American Craft Council membership that includes professional development workshops and mentorship, marketing and promotional support, and other great benefits.

You are now entering a filterable feed of Awardees.

  • Amy Wilderson

    Amy Wilderson is a multi-media visual artist who grew up in Minnesota. Her work centers on metalsmithing, wireworking, and knotting techniques that transform “forgotten treasures” - objects such as orphan earrings, broken heirlooms, vintage Mardi Gras beads, reclaimed metal, and childhood mementos - into meaningful wearable art. She connects these elements with gemstones associated with myth, power, and healing. By reviving these items, Amy explores themes of legacy, memory, cultural heritag...

  • Mariah Quincy

    iah q, member of the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe, is an artist who focuses on creating meaningful yet playful beadwork. Living in—and often traveling around—Minnesota, she is surrounded by many inspiring relatives, human and non-human alike. A major goal in her work is to honor the joy, beauty, and life-lessons those relatives have to offer. iah q enjoys showcasing her beaded pieces in hand-crafted environments or backdrops before sending them off to their new homes across Turtle Island.

  • Taliesin Nyala

    Taliesin Nyala is a woodworker, writer, and artist building furniture and home decor out of sustainably harvested wood. Along with this, she writes about learning this craft and the ways making work by hand is medicine in our lives. She’s received grants from the Southeastern Minnesota Arts Council and most recently the Minnesota State Arts Board. She lives in Saint Paul with her family and works with her dad in southeastern Minnesota.

  • Wone and Youa Vang

    Third Daughter, Restless Daughter creates unique cross stitches that depict progressive work not usually seen in traditional embroidery. The unconventional work allows the two sisters to speak to all who want artwork that voices their thoughts in pretty "x"es. Influenced by their grandmother's traditional Hmong embroidery at a young age, the duo uses their love of pop culture and imagery to modernize old-fashioned cross stitches.