Kayla Powers is a place-based artist and naturalist who makes ecologically focused textile art with and about the living world. She employs the traditional practices of foraging, dyeing, weaving, and stitching to explore the common threads of our shared humanity with the intention of creating connections - to the earth, to craft, and to each other.

Kayla holds an MFA in Fiber Art from Cranbrook Academy of Art and a BA in Art History from Western Michigan University. Her work has been shown in solo exhibitions at Stetson University in Deland, Florida, Simone DeSousa Gallery in Detroit, Michigan and General Motors Design Center in Warren, Michigan among others. She was the recipient of a Knight Art Grant to create a public art installation featured in Detroit Month of Design. Kayla was awarded the President’s Award for Sustainability from Cranbrook Academy of Art, a Windgate Fellowship at Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts, and was a nominee for the Outstanding Student Award from Surface Design Association.

Kayla is the ATW's International Artist in Residence and the Hancock Fellow. Supported by the Tapestry Foundation of Australia, the Hancock Fellowship was established to bring international artists in tapestry, textile and design to visit the ATW and share their expertise through a solo exhibition and lecture whilst promoting contemporary art and creative industries in Australia.