Haystack announces summer 2026 program schedule

Participants weave on floor looms on the deck outside Haystack’s fiber studio in 2023. Courtesy of Haystack Mountain School of Crafts.

By staff

DEER ISLE–There may be snow and ice on the ground now, but the Haystack Mountain School of Crafts is already gearing up for its  75th summer season, announcing 46 intensive workshops from June through August, including blacksmithing, ceramics, digital fabrication, fiber, glass, graphics, metals, wood, and writing.

Prospective students can see a video below of the school, its campus and its offerings.

“Haystack will again open its studios to artists from around the world of all levels of experience and ability—united in their seriousness of purpose and willingness to learn from one another in a creative and enriching community of peers,” said the school’s executive director Perry Price in a press release. The various courses will be taught by a cadre of 49 instructors.

For 2026, Studio Assistant Fellowships and Haystack Fellowship opportunities are available at the school. In addition, its two-week Open Studio Residency will move back to the spring, providing access to blacksmithing to accepted participants.. Those selected for the highly competitive program attend for free.

The school also offers a new opportunity for people to apply as studio technicians, who support residents “during their use and navigation of the studios,” the release said. 

Thanks to major support from the Windgate Foundation, application fees are again waived for all 2026 summer programs, including summer workshops, Studio Assistant Fellows, Haystack Fellowships, Studio Techs, Square ONE, and the Open Studio Residency. Participants are responsible for course fees, materials costs, lodging and meals.

A glassblowing demonstration in Haystack’s “Hot Shop” in 2024. Photo by Dan Rajter, courtesy of Haystack Mountain School of Crafts.

Applications open on January 6, 2026. The deadline for Studio Assistant Fellowship, Haystack Fellowship, Studio Tech, and Open Studio Residency applications is January 30. The deadline for general summer workshop and Square ONE workshop applications is February 20. 

Haystack was founded in 1950 as an “experiment in education and community,” the press release said. 

The school’s campus, designed by noted American architect Edward Larrabee Barnes, opened in 1961 when the School relocated to Deer Isle from its original location in Montville, Maine.

“The buildings and secluded, natural setting have provided steadfast support for convening an intergenerational community of makers from around the world to share ideas, materials, and techniques, and make discoveries alongside one another in a creative and generative environment,” the school said.

Read more about the school’s summer programs, including workshop and residency descriptions, on the Haystack website.

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