Nantucket Island School of Design & the Arts

About Us

Nantucket Island School of Design & the Arts (NISDA) is a year-round cultural and arts educational institution whose mission is to explore the connections of the arts, sciences, humanities, and the environment, and to enhance education, community and quality of life through the arts. Now in its fourth decade, generations of students, islanders, summer visitors, student and professional artists have explored the arts in its workshops and programs. NISDA fosters creative freedom and nurtures the imagination through its deep respect for the artistic process through multicultural and interdisciplinary environmental arts stewardship as an expression of human spirit, resiliency and voice of social conscience. NISDA hosts Art Programs for all ages, Cultural Arts Lectures, Community Events and Gallery Exhibitions in its converted Dairy Barn, Heifer Barn, Silo Gallery, Ceramics Long Shed Studio and Outdoor Pavilion. NISDA’s Artist-in-Residency Colony is adjacent to the NISDA Campus. Programs include Ceramics, Painting, Drawing, Textiles, Photography, Art in the Environment, Cooperative Programs, Artist-in-Residence