Studio Artist Program at Foci MCGA
All spaces are currently filled in the Studio Artist Program!
Reach out to mitchell.kile@mnglassart.org to be added to the waitlist.
The Foci MCGA Studio Artist Program fosters creative growth in artist’s using the glass medium. The Studio Artist Program offers individual studio spaces to artists seeking a work area to reflect upon, process, and assemble their work in addition to using the main glass studios at Foci MCGA. This type of space is an important component of emerging and professional artists’ studio practice. The Studio Artist Program offers a semi-private studio space to 6 artists in a secure room. Each licensed space includes a personal worktable, a personal shelving unit, and a VIP level membership with 24 hour studio access. The Studio Artist Program requires participants to be active members within the studio space as well as the larger community at Foci MCGA.
Applications are reviewed on an on-going basis depending on studio availability. If there are no spaces currently available, we encourage interested people to apply to be added to the wait list.
Application requirements:
Brief description of your education and glass background.
Brief description of the glass processes and equipment you are experienced in using.
Statement about your reasons for wanting a studio at Foci MCGA.
Resume or Bio including 2 references contact information (pdf or doc file upload)
5-10 images of artwork (jpg file upload, 2 MB max file size)
Image list for artwork including title, year created, medium, dimensions (pdf or doc file upload)
Studio licensing includes:
1 personal worktable and 1 personal storage shelving unit within a secure studio room.
Optional addition storage shelf for extra fee.
24hr studio access and equipment use
Requires annual training on studio operations.
Off hours equipment rental must be pre-approved by staff.
All utilities included: Water, heat, electricity, trash, internet
VIP membership benefits
24 hour studio access with competency training and test.
Complementary use of the Cold Shop.
Complimentary use of propane torch and oxy-propane torch in Hot Shop.
Complimentary use of Classroom and Mold Room when classes and events are not scheduled.
Option to have a profile on the artist directory on our website.
Receives first notice of commission opportunities that come through Foci MCGA.
Receives free admission into Foci MCGA ticketed events.
May apply to sell work in the Marketplace Gallery and State Fair Booth at a 60/40 commission rate on work sold.
Studio licensing does not include:
Studio rental fees.
Janitorial service; artists are responsible for keeping the studio room clean.
Licensing Requirements:
1 year license agreement at $195/month with option to reapply*
A security deposit of one month’s license fee of $195.00
$50.00 key deposit
Current Studio Artist Program Participants
Carla Christenson
I am a mixed media sculpture artist, however much of my work is focused in and around glass. Invoking my experience as a glassworker, I let the medium inform my work as I explore different materials and processes. Through unsettling imagery and use of material I create installations that express the human experiences of pain, memory, and healing. The body, both human and material, are used in my work to communicate the rawness of breaking and fragmentation. Both uncomfortable and playful, my sculptures address what it means to exist in a state where to forget and fall apart are always going to be evident. Taking inspiration from my own personal experiences and childhood, I create sculptural and installation-based work that delves into topics of hurt, healing, and the body.
Carla Christenson is a visual artist residing in Minneapolis, MN. She received her BFA from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2021 with a concentration in glassworking and sculpture. Since graduating she has spent her time working in glass production, teaching glassworking classes at Foci MCGA, and exploring her own work in and out of the hotshop. Her work has been shown in multiple shows and has been awarded multiple purchase awards by the Wisconsin Union Directorate for her sculptural glass work. She was the 2022 Local Emerging Artist at Foci MCGA and exhibited a solo show there in April 2023.
Dante Germain
Dante Germain is known for his clean, organic, and modern aesthetic with his sculptural and functional designs.
Dante’s primary body of work stemmed from ideas revolving around water quality issues. Over time, Dante discovered that glass is a perfect medium to represent water, allowing him to capture a moment in time like a sculptural photograph.
His most recent project has been designing a line of vessels shaped from rocks collected from local and iconic bodies of water. The idea is for people to drink, hold, interact, but most of all to think about their relationship and experiences with their favorite body of water.
Once he collects the rocks from the lake or river, he blows the molten glass into the stones at about 2000 Degrees Fahrenheit. The aesthetic is simple and clean, emphasizing the beautiful organic features shaped only by nature.
Emily McBride
Designer and glassblower, Emily McBride crafts curious glass objects for the home. With a collection of minimalist tableware and decor, she creates purposeful glass objects that inspire desire to touch, use, and hold, while bringing light and color into the home.
I hold a BFA in Glass from Temple University and an MFA in Craft/Material Studies from Virginia Commonwealth University. I have worked at the following schools and art centers: University of Louisville, Penland School of Crafts, Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, Pilchuck Glass School, University of Wisconsin-River Falls, & Foci Minnesota Center for Glass Arts.
Patricia Punykova
My relationship with glass began in fear. As a child, I broke nearly every object I touched, earning the title “champion glass breaker” from my father. It makes my path feel improbable, if not inevitable.
With a background in apparel, I am drawn to the curves of the body as both form and framework. I create contemporary jewelry that merges glass with precious metal, stones, and leather. Guided by a sensitivity to color that borders on synesthetic, I experience color viscerally, as taste, scent, and mood.
Transparency combined with opaque inclusions creates marbled colors with depth, what I call visual texture, inviting the viewer to closer inspection. Glass is both alluring and willful; it resists control and invites collaboration. I follow its lead, shaping color and light into sculptural, wearable forms.
Patricia Punykova is a glass jewelry artist based in Minneapolis. Her work is inspired by a love of color, form, and the allure of glass. Trained in apparel design in 1980s Seattle, she spent fifteen years in the fashion industry before turning to glass jewelry in 2010. Since, she has studied with glass artists Richard Whiteley, Sylvia Levenson, Jason Chakravarty, and metalsmiths Danny Saathoff and Marisa Martinez. Her practice has evolved from stained and kilnformed glass to flameworking. Driven by the material’s endless possibilities, Punykova creates contemporary jewelry influenced by fashion trends and the dynamic relationship between color, material, and personal expression.
Hannah White-McGinn
I started my education in glass during my first year of undergrad at the University Wisconsin River-Falls. During this time I was granted the privilege of being in the first groups of students to study under Eoin Breadon. It was Eoin who connected me to Foci MCGA. From there I was connected with the incredible artist network of the twin cities and surrounding area. I have had the privilege of learning from and working with many community artists at not only Foci MCGA, but Vandalia Glassworks, and individual artists' studios.
As an artist, I have always used my work as a way to process and understand the world around me. My practice explores the space between historical and cultural artworks, examining how their meanings can shift when influenced by the beauty of the natural world. Over time, I have worked across many media, but I am especially drawn to glass for its fluidity, which brings a unique sense of energy and movement to my ideas.
Most recently, I have been developing two collections of glass sculptures. The first is a series of vases inspired by classical Greek and Roman representations of the female form, reimagined through colors drawn from flowers and other botanical elements. Building on these ideas, the series reflects on the diversity found in nature and celebrates the beauty of acceptance.
The second series consists of Zen garden–inspired pieces featuring a solitary tree emerging from a rock, surrounded by pools of sand dotted with small, handcrafted pebbles. Both the rock and the tree are sculpted from solid glass and mounted on a base that supports the composition and the sand, forming a miniature landscape. These works invite viewers to discover their own sense of peace and tranquility. The series also pushes the boundaries of glass as a medium, encouraging touch and interaction. From the outset, my goal was to create sculptures that could be engaged with directly, allowing viewers to experience the artwork firsthand and become part of its evolution as they form their own patterns and impressions in the sand.
Dave Wirth
Dave Wirth is a developing glass artist driven by curiosity, hands-on learning, and a genuine appreciation for the process of making. He was first introduced to glass at Vandalia Glassworks, where classes in paperweights, ornaments, and vases quickly turned into a lasting passion. After completing the Pathway to Independence program, he began renting studio time and exploring his own ideas through glass.
When Vandalia closed, Dave continued his journey at Foci MCGA, where he expanded his skills across a wide range of techniques including color application, coldworking, solo blowing, kiln forming, neon, Venetian techniques, and cane work. Along the way, he has learned from a number of experienced artists and instructors at Foci MCGA, the Corning Museum of Glass, and the Tulsa Glassblowing School.
Outside of the studio, Dave holds associate degrees in Product Design and Electronics–Computers and leads a small manufacturing engineering team. This background shapes his approach to glass, blending problem-solving, precision, and a focus on continuous improvement. He enjoys the challenge of refining techniques and steadily progressing with each piece he creates.
Dave values the collaborative nature of the glass community and continues to grow not only through his own work, but by learning alongside and supporting other artists.
