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Support the camp!
- Give students the opportunity to attend camp through need-based financial aid
- Give camp students the opportunity to take classes taught by world class artists
- Repair and rebuild our historical campus
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Jazz on the Waterfront
We would like to thank our supporters for attending Jazz on the Waterfront last Saturday and participating in the event's silent auction.
Guests of the event enjoyed New Orleans fare, a silent auction, and a night of live jazz music and swing dancing. Many stayed at the event for hours, dancing and enjoying our live band until midnight. Thank you to all contributors to the event - from volunteers to benefactors, the event would not have been a success without the support of the community and the contribution of our many benefactors.
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Upcoming Events
July 3
Theater and Improv Art Share
7pm, Odess Theater
July 4
The Life of the Artist Art Share
7pm, Odess Theater
July 6
Dance, Theater, and Music Art Share
7pm, PAC
July 7
Music Department Art Share
7pm, Odess Theater
July 8
Student Talent Show
7pm, Odess Theater
July 9
The Mechanical Man Live Film Score
7pm, PAC
For more information please call the Sitka Fine Arts Camp office at 907-747-3085
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Faculty Spotlight:
Scott Davis
Scott Davis, a theater and a dance faculty member, is an SFAC legend. His affiliation with the camp began when he started attending as a camper with fellow icons Paul Cox, Roblin Davis, and Roger Schmidt. More than thirty years later, Scott now teaches Stretch the Body, Stretch the Mind, Mime, and Advanced Mime.
Can you tell us about your history with the camp?
I came as a camper in the early 80s, along with a number of the current faculty. When I graduated, I became a counselor, and then a counselor teacher and a teacher. Eventually, I served as the Artistic Director of the camp for ten years. Now, I'm back to just teaching.
What was special about your experience at the camp?
It was life changing to be instructed by people who dedicated their lives to the arts... Beyond the influence of their creative work and the artistic tools they taught me, the camp's faculty brought about a different presence to life. They were engaged in the world in a way that was passionate and generous. I always hoped that I've been able to embody some of the passion and generosity that they brought and exposed me to.
What brought you to teach at the camp?
As a counselor, I would regularly do counselor Art Shares. At one point, they asked me if I wanted to teach a class... I did an education minor as an undergraduate and I knew I wanted to have a hand in education, but then I went off to law school. I think it was telling that I would come back to camp during the summers instead of doing internships. There was something compelling about the camp, this community and working with these kids. Whether I should come back and teach at the camp was never even a question.
continues to the right...
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Greetings!
Happy Fourth of July Weekend! The Sitka Fine Arts Camp will be participating in a number of Independence Day celebrations around Sitka this weekend, and we are so excited to be celebrating the holiday with our campers. Tonight, the camp will collectively gather at the John O'Connell Bridge to watch Sitka's annual Fourth of July fireworks. Tomorrow, campers will enjoy a half day of classes as we all join Sitka's annual Fourth of July Parade. Look out for the Sitka Fine Arts Camp if you have the opportunity to make it out to the parade. A number of our campers will be performing.
A student composes a poem in writing class
Although the Middle School Camp ended this past week, the liveliness of our campus has been upheld with the arrival of our High School campers. From the first day of auditions, it has been astounding to witness the level of talent and the enthusiasm that our High School campers bring to the camp. Music can be heard on every corner of campus every hour of the day, as students continue to collaborate and rehearse after classes end. The walls of Yaw, our visual arts building, have already been carpeted in a layer of beautiful drawings from our visual arts classes. When the sun comes out, students in theater and writing classes can be seen and heard on every lawn on campus, reciting lines, or writing poetry. Our historic campus provides a stunning backdrop to the artistic creativity that our classes inspire. It is truly inspirational to be amongst the talented and hardworking students of our High School Camp. We can't wait to see the growth of our campers under faculty guidance in the coming week.
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Save It or Lose It!
 | | The Exterior of the Laundry Building, also known as Smoke Stack |
The SFAC campus is composed of a number of special spaces that hold a history for creativity and imagination. Of the buildings that SFAC houses, however, one stands out. The Laundry Building, also known to students as "Smokestack," is currently one of the last buildings on the former Sheldon Jackson Campus to be rebuilt.
Originally built in 1911 by Ludlow and Peabody of New York, this nationally recognized historic building formerly served as both the laundry building and the central heating establishment for the Sheldon Jackson School. Currently, the Smoke Stack has been reincarnated into a recital space for various groups on campus such as jazz combos, chamber musicians, and, perhaps most fitting of all, Rock Band.
Although the Laundry Building fits the typical grunge rock stereotype of messy garages and dusty recording spaces, improvements can be made to optimize the usage of the building. It doesn't take an expert to spot the problems that the deteriorating Smoke Stack poses. The exterior and roof are plagued with an ongoing invasion of pestilent moss. As a result, the interior suffers from leakage causing the building to rot from the inside out.
Roger Schmidt, the camp's Executive Director, explains that without re-shingling the roof and repainting the exterior, the building can no longer be "sealed from the elements." In fact, each season will take its turn disintegrating what is left of this historical building.
SFAC does not only plan to fix the roof and exterior. In addition to these repairs, we hope to convert the main floor of the building into an art gallery café in the near future, making it a space that showcases faculty and student artwork. Additionally, the building's attic will be transformed into an enhanced performance space for classes such as Rock Band. In the distant but foreseeable future, we hope to convert the basement, that is currently housing a number of old oil drums, into a metal workshop area.
To save the Smoke Stack before it is lost forever, a rescue mission has been put into action. Phase One of restoration begins with the reconstruction of the roof and a repainting of the exterior, a seemingly simple task that will take the work of 30 volunteers and thousands of dollars. Volunteers will be arriving on the campus from over ten colleges around the nation in late July. SFAC hopes to raise a goal amount of $50,000, which will help cover the cost of materials and supplies, construction, supervisor costs and meal coverage for volunteers, before our guest arrive.
In order to fund Phase One of the renovation, we are launching the Save it or Lose it campaign, a month long fundraiser that will hopefully generate much-needed funds for the building's restoration. The fundraiser includes an online auction, a restaurant coupon deal, and donation boxes that will be distributed around many of Sitka's grocery stores.
Our online auction features two brand new Samick electric guitars graciously provided by Anchorage music store The Horn Doctor, as well as three original SFAC event posters from the Holiday Brass Concert of 2013, Jazz on the Waterfront 2014, and Circus Camp 2014 provided by SFAC's own Bayla Laks
(http://biddingowl.com/sitkafineartscamp).
In addition, our restaurant deal bridges the camp's campaign with local businesses by offering supporters of the camp dining vouchers to Alaska Today, a local restaurant. For the month of July, our special offer allows voucher holders to give through the purchase of meals at Alaska Today located at the Alaska Native Brotherhood Hall in Sitka. 10% of the profits from the meals paid with a presentation of the voucher will go back to the camp in support of the Save It or Lose It campaign. Dining vouchers can be found at http://sitkafineartscamp.org/saveitorloseit.
Those who are in Sitka can also support our campaign by contributing to the various donation buckets that we have placed in select grocery stores around town. The buckets are located at Evergreen Natural Foods, Sea Mart, and Market Center. You can also give directly to the camp at http://fineartscamp.org/donate or by calling 907-747-3085.
A lot of work still has to be done in order for the Laundry Building to reach its full potential. We fully believe that, if restored, the building will grow to be an integral part of the campus. If 500 supporters simply give $100 we can begin to transform the Laundry Building into the building it has the power to be.
For more information, please call the Sitka Fine Arts Camp Office at 907-747-3085 or contact office@fineartscamp.org
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...continued from Faculty Spotlight 
What is most rewarding about teaching at camp?
Even to this day, I am still learning from my students. Just two days ago, the students in my advanced mime class misunderstood my instructions, which resulted in interpretations that were way more interesting than what I had intended. I will have students that inspire me, which I will source when I work with other artists in the studio. What I love about teaching is the fact that you're never done learning. On top of that, there is a synergy at camp that is generated from its cross discipline nature. The camp brings artists from different disciplines to teach at the same, beautiful place. Every night, we are exposed to each other's fields, and there's a really powerful and rich feeling of fertile cross pollination between the faculty.
Any last thoughts on the growth of the camp in your years?
Year after year, I am struck by and inspired by the quality of education that is happening here, and the past few years, the quality of education that is happening is better than it has ever been. I was at the camp in the years where we were not sure if the camp was going to be able to continue, and we were not sure if the community was going to help sustain the camp. Now, there's finally a sense of security and confidence that the camp is going to be here in the long run. I feel that the community is fully invested in this project, and that it is here to stay.
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Thank you for your ongoing support, Sitka Fine Arts Camp Staff www.fineartscamp.org 907-747-3085
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