Jesse Taj Karolczuk was born January 13th, 1975 in Wareham, Massachusetts. Jesse was raised and since then lives and works in beautiful Humboldt county, California, home of the majestic redwood trees. "Taj" as many people know him began working with glass in 1994 in Eugene Oregon using the flamework or torchework technique. Taj's flame sculpted murrine canes have been embraced by collectors worldwide including a permanent exhibition at the Palazzo Rota museum in Venice, Italy. Murrine are cross sections of a glass cane that contain the same image throughout its length usually depicting abstract designs, floral patterns, animals and even portraits of famous figures. The art of murrine making goes back at least 2500 years when the Egyptians created murrine canes unrivalled to this day. Jesse uses these miniature designs as subject matter in most of his work, primarily paperweights and marbles. In 2003 at the request of fellow artists Paul Stankard and Lucio Bubacco, Jesse Taj created special murrine canes depicting their signatures in glass to sign their work. His art includes themes such as butterflies, ocean life, magic, and mysticism. Jesse Taj Karolczuk has taught glassblowing in Italy, Japan, and the U.S. and has been a member of the Glass Art Society since 2000.