a little about us…
The Georgia Fine Arts Academy, a 501(c)3 nonprofit educational institution, was founded in 1980 “to encourage and stimulate the development of the arts and humanities in Georgia.” Since its first Talent Identification Project in 1981, hundreds of high school students have attended its summer educational programs at the Daffodil Farm in North Georgia.
In the 1990s, the Georgia Fine Arts Academy began providing programs in the arts to enrich the lives of inner city youth in Atlanta, as well as for emotionally and behaviorally challenged students in the public schools’ North Georgia Educational Program. By the end of the 1990s, more than 1,000 students had participated in and benefited from Georgia Fine Arts Academy programs. Graduates of the program went on to study at art schools around the country including Parsons School of Design in New York, Art Institute of Chicago, Atlanta College of Art, Otis College of Art and Design in Los Angeles, Savannah College of Art and Design, Georgia Tech’s College of Architecture, and the Ernest G. Welch School of Art at Georgia State University.
Former students are employed as professionals in Theatre Arts, Media Arts, Creative Writing, Visual Arts, Music and Dance. Many are teaching at major institutions of higher learning or lead nonprofits of their own. Our instructors have gone on to become leading arts administrators, and the mission continues.
At Athens’ Ciné Lab, we have now held over sixteen annual Cafés Apollinaire, showcasing the talents of Georgians in a range of artistic disciplines who’ve gone on to have successful professional careers in their discipline. We relish musing, “we knew them when…”
We have a long history of providing eclectic programming, professional development, and fun to our region. We are presently in the midst of a renaissance fueled in part by UGA’s I-Corps innovation accelerator program. ATHICA: Athens Institute for Contemporary Arts has generously provided us space and support in the form of their Artist-in-ATHICA residency for July 2023. “The Visual Artists of the Georgia Fine Arts Academy” exhibition will adorn the walls of ATHICA, inspiring students and instructors alike to keep their creative fires aflame.