Rita Shimelfarb is a Chicago-based glass artist known for blending centuries-old techniques with bold contemporary innovations in glass forming and painting. Born in the USSR in 1972 and arriving in the United States as a refugee in 1989, she brings a layered cultural perspective to her work—where light, color, and structure meet in unexpected ways.

With a degree in Mathematics and Computer Science, Rita approaches each project with an engineer’s precision and an artist’s intuition. Her analytical background fuels her ability to solve complex construction challenges and to pioneer new processes for both image creation and medium manipulation.

Rita has trained extensively with master glass painters, absorbing and evolving traditional methods while developing her own signature techniques. She shares this expertise through workshops across the U.S. and internationally, inspiring artists to push the boundaries of painted glass.

Her work has been exhibited nationwide and is held in numerous public and private collections, reflecting a career dedicated to making the luminous language of glass both timeless and new.