Twin Cities Live Feature
One morning we got a call from Twin Cities Live (Channel 5) field reporter Emily Engberg. She was featuring the 2010 Building and stopped into Foci MCGA to have a look around our studio.
Watch the video here!
Foci MCGA is Awarded Second & Third Grant!
At the end of 2010, Foci received a Capital Grant to help fund the construction of an electric glass furnace, and an Art Activity grant to bring in another visiting artist workshop.
As part of the $10,000 Capital Grant, Foci MCGA was responsible for raising $14,050 of the total project cost. Through generous support from our glass community, that goal has nearly been reached 2 months before the deadline!
Our visiting artist is Tony Cray, coming from his Missouri studio in May 2011 with assistant Jeremy Lampe. Cray will instruct a three-day workshop on traditional Italian cane techniques and murrini.
Foci MCGA is Awarded First Grant!
In September, 2010, we received news that our grant proposal to the Metropolitan Regional Arts Council was selected for funding! The grant money will be used to bring a three-day glass sculpture workshop, Blow Your Mind, with glass artists Charles Lowrie and Michael Angelo Menconi, to our studio in January 2011. To find more information about the workshop, visit our Workshops page, or Lowrie and Menconi's site, Transcensions .
This project is funded, in part, by the Minnesota Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund as appropriated by the Minnesota State Legislature with money from the vote of the people of Minnesota on November 4, 2008. Senator Larry Pogemiller and Representative Phyllis Kahn presented Foci their "Big Check" on October 22, 2010.
New Foci MCGA Board of Directors
On July 14th, 2010, we held the first Foci/MCGA Member Meeting. There were 30 members that attended and voted for a new Board of Directors. Our new board will consist of Michael Boyd, Timothy Denison, Rudy Gomez, David Royce, Lucinda Silvis, Randall Strand and Andrew Thompson.
Thank you to our founding board for all of your hard work!
Make-A-Wish Foundation
Foci MCGA has teamed up with Make-A-Wish Foundation once again. Foci Artists Michael Boyd and Todd Cameron worked with a 15-year-old boy on April 10th, who had just returned from his Wish Trip to Sydney, Australia and was inspired by the Sydney Opera House. Using some photographs of the unique structure, they designed a glass sculpture that will be sold at the 2010 Wish Ball at the new Target Field. Proceeds from Wish Ball go to grant even more Wishes.
Non-Profit Status
In the summer of 2009, Foci Glass applied for 5013C status to Bbecome a non-profit organization. In December, 2009 we received our long awaited gift! Foci Minnesota Center for Glass Arts is now an official non-profit and will be pursuing grants to fund residencies, fellowships, exhibitions and expanded programming in the upcoming years.
Glass Artist's Appreciation Party
During the party on August 29th, there was a silent auction, which raised $2,800 for Foci Minnesota Center for Glass Arts! There were numerous glassblowing demonstrations throughout the day, including one by Robinson Scott. He used a metal form to create his piece, using the same techniques which will be demonstrated in the Using Metal Forms workshop on September 19th.
Michael Boyd & Danielle Kieffer addressed the party goers in the Sculpture Grotto with information about the transition to non-profit status and visions for the future of Foci MCGA.
There were also over 40 people that made the commitment to Foci MCGA membership! If you are interested in becoming a member, e-mail us for more information or stop by the studio to register.
Thank you to everyone that came to the party and for your generous donations!
Make-A-Wish Foundation
Michael Boyd donated a vase to the Make-A-Wish Foundation, which he and a Make-A-Wish child had designed together. It raised $6,250 at The 2009 Wish Ball,
in turn helping grant over 3,000 wishes.
Art-A-Whirl 2009
There was a great turn out for this years Art-A-Whirl. The glass instrument performance with Douglas Ewart, Donald
Washington, Steve Goldstein and dancer Roxanne Wallace was fascinating to watch.
Foci organized the second Regional Glass Artists Show, exhibited at the Thorp Building this year. We also had a Foci Staff Show at the Northrup King Building. Hundreds of people walked through admiring all the glass art.
Many artists did glassblowing demonstrations throughout the weekend at our studio. Thank you for joining us for Art-A-Whirl!
University of Minnesota Archaeology Project
Michael Boyd and a few U students examine glass shards from as old as 200 AD! He has been helping them on class projects, including making samples of various glass vessels that would have been made over 1800 years ago.
