Mischka Jay “Alexi” Hunter, a talented and passionate glass artist has

been perfecting his art at the Kingston Glass Studio and Gallery in

Kingston, Ontario, since 2006. He is a graduate of the Crafts and Design

Program at Sheridan College in Oakville, Ontario, where he discovered a

profound resonance with the art of glass blowing.

Mischka was born December 1975 in Vancouver, British Colombia and has

lived in a variety of places including the Hawaiian Islands and Europe. He

also spent many formative years at his family’s farm near Kingston,

Ontario, and graduated from Napanee District Secondary School.

Growing up, Mischka knew that he liked to work with his hands- he also

knew that artistic talent ran in the family. One of his grandfathers survived

the Second World War in a Russian camp by painting watercolours.

Following his graduation from Sheridan College, Mischka was offered a

partnership at the Kingston Glass Studio, formerly known as Fireworks. He

jumped at the chance. The exquisite beauty of Kingston and the Islands

and the surrounding area was a natural draw for him. He believes that

Kingston offers artists of all mediums a compatible environment where

they can find inspiration and enjoy a creative lifestyle. An eighth

generation Canadian, Mischka takes special pride in his family history and

especially the link to Kingston where his great, great, great grandfather, a

Great Lakes captain was born in 1827.

Artist Statement

When I applied to the Crafts and Design Program at Sheridan College, I

knew that I wanted to create objects, and after working with glass for only

a few short weeks, I was hooked. I thoroughly enjoy the glass blowing

process because it combines mental creativity with the physical nature of

working hot glass into simple forms and then altering them with a variety

of detail. This artistic duality is often reflected in my work where I unite two

very different materials in a harmonious way.

Much of my work is inspired by childhood memories. In the New and Used

series, I am referring to the natural decay of metal artefacts such as

rusting old machinery and tools, found on my family farm. I delight in

creating a contrast of textures and colour. I try to take advantage of the

optical qualities of the glass when engraving, and at the same time

obscuring parts of the surface.

I am also very interested in the interplay between glass and metal as

artistic mediums. These two materials are both similar and different- both

melt into liquid form at high temperatures and will shatter and crack at

low temperatures. The visual end result of each however, looks very

different. When combined, the smooth transparent quality of glass

contrasts starkly with the textured rusted metal, symbolizing new and used,

past and future. My artistic drive is fierce and my goal is to create

provocative works of art that will continue to hold meaning far into the

future.