haystack labs

Exploring the future of craft through technology, collaboration, and experimental making

Haystack Labs brings together artists, designers, engineers, and researchers to explore the intersections of craft, technology, and material innovation. Founded in collaboration with the MIT Center for Bits and Atoms and hosted annually since 2021 at Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, Labs provides a unique environment for open-ended research, experimentation, and collaboration across disciplines.

Unlike a traditional conference or residency, Labs functions as a collaborative research studio—a space where participants share ideas, prototype new tools, and test creative processes that expand the possibilities of making. The program emphasizes accessibility, sustainability, and the open exchange of knowledge between artists and technologists.

Each year, Labs participants form small working groups to investigate a variety of topics, including:

  • Sustainable and bio-based materials

  • Digital fabrication and open-source toolmaking

  • Education, community design, and accessibility

  • Robotics, computation, and interactive systems

  • Environmental and social applications of craft and technology

The outcomes of these collaborations often take the form of prototypes, publications, open-source tools, and continuing partnerships that extend well beyond the week at Haystack. Over time, Labs has cultivated a growing network of practitioners advancing new approaches to craft, design, and technology worldwide.

To explore projects and documentation from past years, visit: haystacklabs.org

About the Program

  • Format: Invitational, collaborative program (not a workshop or residency)

  • Location: Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, Deer Isle, Maine

  • Participation: Open to invited artists, designers, engineers, and researchers; nominations are welcome from past Labs participants and Haystack affiliates.

  • Support: Haystack provides room, board, and shared access to studios and tools. Participants are encouraged to bring materials, ideas, and curiosity to share.

Purpose & Goals

  • Make technology and experimental processes more accessible to artists

  • Bring new ideas, knowledge, and tools to Haystack and the broader craft field

  • Cultivate an interdisciplinary network committed to collaboration and open-source sharing

  • Document and disseminate emergent craft practices that integrate new technologies and materials

Partners

Haystack Labs is a collaborative program that includes participation from a collection of interdisciplinary partners:

  • MIT Center for Bits & Atoms

  • Autodesk

  • New Balance

  • Tufts: Silklab

  • University of Washington

Visit the Haystack Labs Documentation Site →

Features project archives, research notes, and documentation from past Labs.