The Maritime Arts and Inspiration Center.

Hello. Welcome to the Maritime Arts and Inspiration Center(MAIC). The MAIC is currently part of International Field Studies(IFS), a non-profit educational organization established in 1970. MAIC was created to bring together artists, educators, and artisans to the beachfront property of Blanket Sound, Andros Island in the Bahamas. At MAIC, artists from around the world have the unique opportunity to learn traditional Bahamian craft from the master carvers, weavers, and boat builders of Andros. Each class takes an interdisciplinary approach combining the rich history, culture and environment with the processes of art making. Qualified instructors and a full staff are available to make your trip a success.
The Maritime Arts and Inspiration Center is designed to empower artists and promote ideas of sustainability in rural island communities. Boat-building, Fiber Sculpture, and Woodcarving will be taught year-round. The center will serve students enrolled in academic art programs, working artists, and the Bahamian community. Andros is rich with culture and traditional artisans eek-ing out a living in the tourist trade. The MAIC seeks to elevate the status of these artisans to master builders, carvers and weavers and give them a venue to teach and exchange ideas about the world’s changing oceans.

The MAIC is field studies in art. Students will be able to explore the coral reef, learn tropical biology and cultural studies, as well as develop sculpture skills. This interdisciplinary approach to conceptual development is needed to help enable young artists to confront serious issues and look outside themselves. Andros is unique in its strong remaining ties to a rural ocean. Time is measured in tides. The people rely on the sea for life. Everywhere there is water maritime peoples are being displaced by development. The MAIC is developing too, but in consideration of community and nature.

 The MAIC plans to celebrate the rich cultural history of Andros without unnecessary environmental impacts. The center will develop off the grid as it was in 1935, but with exciting alternative energy strategies. The technologies will include solar and wind produced lighting, passive solar hot water showers, a bio fuels restored Bahamian wooden boat, and a humanure producing composting toilet.
         
The MAIC seeks to embrace the past and confront the future, empower artisans, and promote environmental education. The environmentally sensitive technology of today is being applied in the development of the MAIC. Technology is easy: wires and gears are readily available. Space Age stuff, the futuristic cutting edge of sustainable design can be bought or better yet donated. What about community? Where do you get that? These are questions for future experimentation. The community surrounding the MAIC is questioning its future, certain of the old school’s history