Jim Scheller is a glass artist based in Staunton, Illinois. After living 27 years in his forested home and art studio of Chehalem Mountain Glassworks in Schools, Oregon, Scheller relocated and opened his current studio near his childhood home of Mt. Olive, IL. There, Scheller operates Macoupin Prairie Glassworks, where he has kilnformed and cast glass art since September of 2018. Following an extensive career as an engineer and technologist, Scheller discovered glass kilnforming in 2012 and has since been dedicated to this craft and his art. Extensive study of and experimentation with the medium of glass is a passion and healthy addiction for Scheller. The artist finds great pleasure in pushing limits and developing new techniques. Employing both “fusing and slumping” and “kiln casting” processes, Scheller’s works of art are composed using glass sheets, comprised of crushed glass (frit) and glass slabs (billets). These sheets are then fired in a kiln at over 1400 degrees Fahrenheit