B I O G R A P H Y From 1978-1980, while working on his landscape architecture degree at Louisiana State University - Baton Rouge, David Garcia became interested in glass - both hot and cold - and studied stained glass under Paul Dufour. Upon returning home in 1981, Garcia resumed his glass studies with John Leighton, and, in 1982, he briefly studied hot glass at the California College of Arts and Crafts under the tutelage of Marvin Lipofsky. In 1983, however, Garcia abandoned academia and began working independently out of Shaun Weisbach's studio and, in 1987, built his own hot glass shop. Today his work can be found in collections, galleries, and fine arts museum shops throughout the United States and Canada.Licensed to practice landscape architecture and the son of an architect, Garcia admits that his work is often reminiscent of buildings and cityscapes through his use of multi-layered geometric forms and the interplay between shapes, brilliant color, and the fluid optics of glass. His philosophy? A guiding influence is his strong belief in relating the ancient art of glassblowing to our contemporary world. And on a more subconscious level, he supposes his attraction to hot glass originates from mankind's perpetual fascination with fire... and poking long sticks into it. The allure of molten glass is that it resembles fire. Intensely hot, fluid, and volatile, it must be handled with finesse, strength, and speed - and yet unlike fire, it can be blown, molded, and crafted into permanent, intricate forms.