About G.A.C.A.

Glass Art Center of the Arctic (G.A.C.A.) is located on 3.44 acres in the Goldstream valley, 10 miles north of Fairbanks, Alaska.
E-mail pete@glassartak.org for more information, to share you thoughts or to contribute to G.A.C.A.

Pete Lanigan with students.

At Risk Youth Programs
Fairbanks is in need of programs for the youth. Alaska has the highest alcohol and drug abuse problems and our children are at risk. Fairbanks is a creative community, but there are not enough opportunities available for the children. The youth is rebelling out of boredom. This is where we want to catch them and give them direction.

Goals:
G.A.C.A. teaches teens the art of glass making, and through the that teaching, create projects of public art. As students become proficient in producing the shapes needed for each project, the pieces generated during the learning process are used to fund G.A.C.A. Through the fund raising there is also a cash incentive program so the students are able to earn money. The learning and creative processes are documented with photos and film, which is used as additional fund raising for the school. G.A.C.A. will eventually be run by the students who fulfill their 3-year apprenticeship program. We wish to raise the funds necessary to build a 30 x 30 metal shop with cement floors for the students. This studio will have a 400 lb. day tank, gas fired and electric annealer and a gas fired glory hole.

'ENDS OF THE EARTH' Tour : A One-year trip from Alaska to Argentina, with a portable glass blowing studio attached to a 1958 International. The focus will be on public art, and a peice will be made by and with local youth at every stop. Click here for more information.

Public Art
As the students' skills are refined and the shapes needed are produced, we make projects that are installed in public places such as the Breast Cancer Society, hospitals, libraries, etc. The better the students get at creating these peices, the more exposure we get. As people become more aware of the importance of public art, the closer we are to our goals.