THE CREATIVE GLASS CENTER OF AMERICA

Established 1983

MISSION
The mission of the Creative Glass Center of America (CGCA) is to provide direct support to emerging and mid-career artists who work with glass. The CGCA advances its mission through the CGCA Fellowship Program, offering twelve fellowships per year to an international community of individual artists. Through other special educational events and public studio access provided on a daily basis, CGCA also promotes the development of art works, made with glass, to an audience of artists, scholars, collectors and the general public. The CGCA Fellowship Program continues to be one of the only means of "unrestricted" support for artists using glass.

HISTORY
In 1982, a group of artists, curators, educators and others collaborated on a mission that would promote the use of glass as a contemporary art medium, and to provide a facility in which an artist could work with glass at a reasonable cost. The CGCA was established in 1983, when Wheaton Village offered the use of it's fully equipped glass studio, anchored by the support of the Museum of American Glass. Since it was formed, the CGCA has been governed by an active and autonomous Board; an official advisory board to the parent organization, Wheaton Village.

For twenty-five years, the CGCA has awarded 305 fellowships to emerging and mid-career artists, from the US and 21 other countries. The CGCA continues to award twelve fellowships each year, and artists are encouraged to use this opportunity to develop and refine their work, while experimenting with glassmaking processes. The collaboration and exchange of ideas among the Fellows enhances a productive climate, supporting the discovery of new vision and resources for each.

Benefits for artists include: housing, a stipend ($1,500 each), most materials, and 24-hour access to hot and cold glass studio facilities. Each artist designs their own working process, and is assisted by their co-fellows and the studio staff. CGCA fellowship artists are chosen through a competitive selection process. The Selection Committee consists of a rotating peer panel of respected professional artists and educators.

Many former fellows have acknowledged that the CGCA has made a significant impact on the development of their careers as educators and/or exhibiting artists. The majority remain active as artists, exhibiting in major galleries and shows. Many have been awarded honors, and others are teaching in colleges and universities worldwide. A large percentage of CGCA Fellows have been included in New Glass Review, the Corning Museum’s international annual selection of the 100 most important new works in glass.