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Mel Munsen was born in San Diego in 1946 and immigrated to Canada in 1970. His work shows extraordinary virtuosity in a style that relates to traditional Venetian glassmaking. His intricate murrini are first assembled hot on the puntil, and second, when cold, cut into thin slices that are used in a technique all of his own. Thousands of these slices are fused in a kiln, to be later flattened on a lap wheel to the desired thinness. In his wrinkled forms, the finished bowls are placed upside down on a cylinder and heated until they collapse to the desired shape. This procedure is risky, as the pieces may not collapse to the artist's intentions, resulting in the loss of weeks of work. His works are in the collections of the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria, The British Columbia Royal Museum and the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts.
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