Rob Raeside

Rob Raeside is a glass object maker who has been working with the medium since 2008. He has studied at Sir Sanford Fleming College and Sheridan College School of Craft. His has worked for accomplished Canadian glass artists Andy Kuntz, Paula Vendermey, Sally McCubbin, Maciej Dyszkiewicz, Alexi Hunter and Mariel Waddell-Hunter. Currently he is a resident artist at Harbourfront Craft Studios in Toronto. He has also worked as a studio technician in the Netflix reality series Blown Away. He lives in Hamilton, Ontario.

Rob’s work is driven by the inherent complexities of what appears to be simple, and the constant desire to refine his technique. Subtlety, simplicity and a love of the making process are the driving forces in his work. Line, separation and balance are strong inspirations for Rob.

Clean lines and shapely forms define Rob’s bottle shapes. As he describes it, “This series of bottles is called Summa from the Swedish word for sum. My father’s side of the family would often tell stories of the time they spent in Sweden. We had Kosta Boda and Orrefers crystal around the house, so before seeing the actual hot process, simple Scandinavian design was my first exposure to decorative glass.”

Rob aims to attach value to objects through careful craftsmanship and design. He creates to help develop as a maker and as an individual. The molten glass seems to melt the inhibitions of the outside world and allow him to focus on the task at hand. As an emerging artist, he is constantly striving to improve his eye for design and his hand for glass.