Ione Thorkelsson is one of Canada's recognized glass artists.  Winner of the 2010 Governor General Saidye Bronfman Award, Ione has spent a lifetime exploring glass sculpture. After twenty years of making vivid blown glass pieces, Thorkelsson turned to master kiln cast glass. 

Largely self-taught and operating a one-woman studio for nearly forty years in relative isolation has forced her to be technically innovative.  As a consequence, she has acquired through time a formidable knowledge of all aspects of glass art.
Her works have been exhibited across North America, Europe and Asia.

Synthia's Closet concerns the cultural disquietude created by current developments in bio-engineering. Using cannibalized electronic bric-a-brac from the dollar store and delicate, transitory natural elements such as bones. feathers, and other found organic objects and fine animal structures, the artist has created a rich conceptual and visual stew.

Series of glass winged figures hanging from ceiling. Installation on view at the Winnipeg International Airport.

Arboreal Fragments with cast glass, tree segments, and LED light. Individual segments are available, priced individually. Installations seen at the Canadian Clay and Glass Museum Canadian, National Gallery of Canada and Canadian Embassy in Hong Kong

Arcadia reconstruction: from memory, is  a tree root with a trunk of cast glass that measures a full 187 cm  in height. 

Ossuary, a ceiling-suspended cast glass sculpture of three distinct vertebrae, each measuring approx. 250 cm in length.  Composite elements make each strand convenient to ship and install.

Marine Avifauna at the Canadian Clay and Glass Museum