metalsmith Tech

Warren wilson college’s new MA in Critical and historical craft studies

Director Namita G. Wiggers and students discuss the ups and downs of academia for those interested in jewelry and metalworking

In the fall of 2018, Warren Wilson College in Swannanoa, North Carolina, launched a new low-residency program focused on developing a field of craft studies, the first of its kind. Conversations with former Metalsmith Editor Emily Zilber highlighted the number of students enrolled in the program with metals training: five of the ten students in the first semester, three of whom hold MFA degrees.

We began to wonder: Why would students in this area of craft media be particularly interested in pursuing an MA in Critical and Historical Craft Studies? What can a program like this offer to makers, and what can makers reveal about opportunities for change in how we teach in academic art programs in the US? Of the five students engaged in the following discussion with program director Namita Gupta Wiggers, one student, Kelly Malec-Kosak, could not continue with the program, as she received a promotion to Chair of the MFA program at Columbus College of Art and Design. The remaining students—Pheonix Booth, Matt Haugh, Matt Lambert, and Kat St. Aubin—will complete their master’s degrees in July 2020.