About

The Handweavers Guild of America, Inc.’s (HGA) mission is to educate, support, and inspire the fiber art community. We provide inspiration, instruction, and networking opportunities for fiber artists of all skill levels. HGA produces a quarterly magazine for its more than 3,500 members, Shuttle Spindle & Dyepot; Convergence®, a biennial international fiber arts conference; Small Expressions, an annual juried exhibition of small fiber artworks; and many more opportunities for artists, including grants, scholarships, and virtual events.

Memberships

We invite you to learn more about HGA by becoming a member today. Click here to view our membership levels and benefits.

Meet the HGA Directors and Staff

Cultivating a Culture of Care, Belonging, and Justice in the Fiber Art Community

The tie that binds us all in our dedication to The Handweavers Guild of America, is a deep passion for the expansive diversity of materials and techniques of fiber art, and the almost unlimited creative possibilities they hold. That diversity is not just a unique strength of our mutigenerational community, it is the foundation on which we all continue to build our knowledge, and the core of our mission to educate, support, and inspire the fiber art community. We the board are dedicated to ensuring the future of fiber art is bright by embracing and celebrating the diversity of our membership, while fostering a culture of care and belonging in our programming. The touch of cloth is a universal human experience, but the history of its production is woven through histories of cultural oppression and injustice. Erasure and re-writing of these histories stands in opposition to our mission as stewards of fiber art knowledge. We have a responsibility to our community to uphold our values of honesty, integrity, empathy, and respect for one another, and we aim to do that by continuing to strive for equitable representation of our historically underrepresented members. We will not be divided by hate and negativity, and look forward to continuing to embrace a community that genuinely cares for its members and cultivates belonging.

HGA Code of Conduct

Ethical Principles and Core Values

• Honesty
• Integrity
• Trustworthiness
• Respect for others, their cultures, and their intellectual property
• Responsibility
• Empathy

HGA does not discriminate on the basis of actual or perceived race, creed, color, religion, alienage or national origin, ancestry, citizenship status, age, disability or handicap, sex, marital status, veteran status, sexual orientation, genetic information, arrest record, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state or local laws. Our organization is dedicated to this policy.

Non-Harassment

HGA believes in treating each other with dignity and respect at all times. Harassment can include actions, language, written words, or objects that create an intimidating or hostile environment, such as:

• Yelling at or humiliating someone
• Physical violence or intimidation
• Unwanted sexual advances, invitations, or comments
• Visual displays such as derogatory or sexually oriented gestures
• Physical conduct including assault or unwanted touching
• Threats or demands

It is HGA’s policy to prohibit intentional and unintentional harassment of all constituents including, but not limited to, staff, contractors, interns, volunteers, and members.

Bullying

We are committed to ensuring a safe and respectful environment that is free of bullying. Bullying can include:

• Spreading malicious rumor or gossip
• Excluding or isolating someone socially
• Withholding necessary information or purposefully giving the wrong information
• Intimidating someone
• Impeding someone’s work
• Telling and sending offensive jokes
• Criticizing or belittling
• Tampering with a person's personal belongings or work equipment

Theft and Intellectual Property

We take the intellectual property rights of others, as well as claims of copyright infringement, seriously.

We recognize that original artistic designs and teaching materials belong solely to the individual who created them and agree not to use their work to make a personal profit without their express written consent. Please contact the artist or teacher if you are unsure if the changes you plan to make are sufficient to not require permission prior to using them.

All materials contained in Shuttle Spindle and Dyepot Magazine and on WeaveSpinDye.org are protected by United States copyright law and may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published, or broadcast without the prior written permission of HGA or, in the case of third party materials, the owner of that content. You may not alter or remove any trademark, copyright, or other notice from copies of the content.

Convergence® is a registered trademark of HGA. We consider our trademark to be our most valuable intellectual property. As such, we retain all rights in our trademark, and will take all appropriate measures to protect and preserve the strength and goodwill of the trademark. You can help us in this endeavor by following this notice. If you learn of any words, letters, designs, devices, logos, icons, or images that are confusingly similar to any of our trademark, or you see any use of the trademark that violates this notice, please notify HGA, and if possible, please provide a link to or copy of the relevant item.

Code of Conduct Acknowledgement

All members of HGA and attendees at HGA-sponsored events acknowledge that:

• You have read the entire code of conduct and understand your responsibilities related to it.
• You have had the opportunity to ask questions to clarify any unclear aspects of the code.
• You agree to abide by its principles.
• You agree to report to HGA any violations of the Code.

Any violations of this Code can result in disciplinary action which, based on the circumstances of the individual case, could result in corrective action including, but not limited to, termination of membership and/or expulsion from HGA-sponsored events. Those expelled from an HGA sponsored event will not get a refund.

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