Through organized production goals that focus on quality, design and sustainability, students develop an understanding of the material while making products that can be enjoyed by the community. There are opportunities on the Crew to learn other fiber skills such as spinning, felting, sewing, dyeing, and basketry. All of these learned skills can be applied to other areas of academic study as well as community engagement.

The Fiber Arts Crew uses wool from the sheep on the farm to spin their own yarn and cultivates a dye garden to dye the yarn. Additionally, Crew members learn about the intersection between art and work by selling their crafts.Read more about the dye garden.

纤维艺术的船员s also affiliated with theCraft Minor.

Supervisor Spotlight

Melanie Wilder

梅勒妮·怀尔德持有学位专业Crafts Fiber, and has dedicated the past 20 years to learning and teaching the fiber skills she so loves to people of all ages. She is interested in exploring how process crosses into our daily living and how intentional choices can help shape our footprint on the future. She enjoys making textiles made from natural dyes and local materials which can be used in daily ritual and to better our daily experience. Fascinated by historical uses and fiber techniques from across the globe and the context in which we use this information as we move forward as contemporary weavers and makers, she hopes to inspire those she works with to find their voice within the world of fiber.

Learning Outcomes

You’ll spend years working alongside your peers and mentored by supervisors. Part of the experience of work at Warren Wilson is guided critical reflection, which helps ensure that you achieve both your own educational goals as well as our Common Learning Outcomes. These intentional learning outcomes distinguish our work program, giving it focus and relevancy that set it apart from federal work study or your average part-time job.

Specifically, our Common Learning Outcomes are:

• Dependability:reliability, accountability, and the ability to successfully manage your time
• Integrity:trustworthiness and respect for transparent honesty
• Initiative:self-control, the ability to evaluate situations, and motivation to carry out responsibilities
• Analytical Thinking:working with available resources to creatively address issues and solve problems
• Communication:the ability to convey information effectively and build community with others
• Collaboration:collaborate with peers to achieve common goals
• Appreciation of the Value of All Work:an understanding of your place in the working world, and a respect for the dignity of all work

Learning and Performance Goals

In addition to our Common Learning Outcomes, each crew in the Work Program identifies crew-specific goals for learning and performance. These are reviewed with you each semester. The Learning and Performance Goals outline skills and abilities the supervisor will teach during the semester.

Our crew curriculum introduces and reinforces students to concepts, skills and projects that help to understand possibilities within fiber arts and contribute to the work of the crew.

These pathways of learning include:

• Weaving
  • Floor loom weaving, patterning, tapestry weaving, and basketry
• 纤维品质和处理
  • wool from farm, flax to linen, spinning, felting
• Natural dyeing
  • growing and working with plants, science collaboration
• Sewing & sustainable clothing industry
  • machine and hand sewing skills, learning about clothing industry impacts and regenerative bioregional fiber systems