At the Arbor Institute, we are committed to the study, celebration, and making of the Arts in the Upstate of South Carolina through curiosity, humility, and faith. 

We strive to accomplish our mission through the shared values of historical Creedal Christianity, Generous Realism, Place-Making, Embodiment, Friendship, Stewardship, Risk-taking, and Delight.

We commit to generous realism. We believe reality is created, complex, and abundant. We affirm the value and independence of things as they are, not as they can be reduced and deconstructed in our minds. Therefore, we value virtuosity and humility instead of mastery because we believe reality ought to be cared for, not bent to our will. We do not seek power over reality, rather, we desire a humble relationship with a mysterious and abundant reality.

We encourage camaraderie and collaboration instead of competition and individualism. Learning happens in friendship when healthy relationships are strengthened.

We delight in the mystery of the unknown instead of insisting on certainty. We are in awe of how God is revealing Himself in the stuff He has made.

We hope to nourish our place by encouraging rootedness, return, and care for our community and the land. We believe place-making is an antidote to modern displacement. Therefore, we take a posture of welcome and hospitality. Being present and patient with the learning and creative process invites transformation for ourselves, our community, and the land.

We want to steward creation because it has been declared eternally good by its Maker. We are committed to cultivating and caring for the raw stuff of reality, collaborating with the Creator in small acts of restoration, because we believe creation is not inert but brimming with life.

We embody our work because we believe our bodies are a way of knowing and are affirmed by Christ’s permanent embodiment in His incarnation. Therefore, we teach the whole person rather than dividing humans into reductive hierarchies of mind, body, and spirit.

We are committed to undertaking intellectual and creative risks even when we aren’t certain of the outcome.