Name and pronouns: Meredith Clark, she/they

Cohort year: 2017-2019 (two years)

Where are you living now? New Haven, CT

What are you doing now? I’m a leather worker under the name Beacon Craft Studio. I am also co-founder of the New Haven Crafters of Color collective.

Website: https://beaconcraftstudio.square.site/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/BeaconCraftStudio/

How has Life Together impacted your life?

I stayed full-time at my host site, I Have A Future, for two years after Life Together. My time as a Life Together fellow and later Lead Organizer continues to shape my orientation to the world. The clearest example is the New Haven Crafters of Color collective—the fruition of the community oriented justice work that I learned in my time in Life Together. It’s not always easy, but we have put on about 10 free pop-ups for artists of color in New Haven who struggle to break into the art scene. Our group is entirely POC of all races, and the majority make under 50% of the average median income for our area. We believe that work and dedication are no less valuable than financial deposits, and seek to lift each other up together. One event I’m particularly proud of is our recent fundraiser for Palestine, in which we raised almost $3,500 for Medical Aid for Palestine and Palestinian Children’s Relief Fund through artist donations that were raffled and auctioned off. I am under no illusion that Gazans can access aid during the onslaught of bombing, but it is a way to help along with contacting legislators and shutting down business as usually. It was also a beautiful way to experience solidarity with other people who believe in Palestinian life. All of us as artists have all faced repercussions like shadowbanning for our pro-Palestinian, anti-war advocacy, but we believe that our relative privilege as Americans means we have a responsibility to the artists of color in Palestine as well.

In a less obvious but spiritually meaningful way, I also turn to chant-songs as my preferred form of prayer. I also lived with Mer Wade, my LT housemate, from 2019-2023 and count my cohort-mates Mer and Hannah as two of my closest friends to this day.