Clay as Language: A Conversation with Lauren Elder
Lauren Elder’s practice sits at the intersection of history, myth, and personal intuition. Drawing from ancestral traditions, symbolic motifs, and her own lived experiences, she transforms clay into vessels that feel at once ancient and entirely new. Each piece balances structure and spontaneity — layering memory, storytelling, and design — while leaving space for improvisation and surprise.
MIXD: Clay has a long history of both function and expression. How do you see your work fitting into or challenging the traditions of ceramics?
LAUREN ELDER: I’m drawn to the origins of ceramics as functional objects, narrative vessels, and sculptural forms that hold the physical and cultural traces of a civilization. In my practice, I reference these histories through form—dipping fabric into clay slip to fossilize gesture, and using engraving, stamping, and symbolic elements to create a personal language.
Ancestral practices, particularly those rooted in Persian art, inform much of my work. I draw from the symbolism found in miniature paintings, rugs, signs, and mythological motifs. I explore how these two-dimensional compositions can unfold into sculptural space, allowing stories once held on the page or woven into cloth to expand materially. My work asks how the objects of our present might be read in the future, and what they might reveal about the time and context from which they came, just as ancient vessels continue to speak to us today.
M: Could you walk us through the rhythm of your studio practice? From idea to finished piece, how do you typically move through your process?
LE: As a graduate student in the ceramics program at the University of Arkansas, the rhythm of my studio practice shifts between experimentation, learning, and making. There’s a different kind of pace here shaped by research, critique, and trying new materials or methods outside of my usual comfort zone. This has expanded my practice in unexpected ways, allowing me to translate imagery and concepts across mediums.
One piece flows into the next, and the body of work begins to evolve on its own. I tend to sculpt in phases, working on multiple pieces at once and then move into glazing all together. Both parts of the process are deeply involved. I carve heavily into my forms, then layer them with detailed painting and surface work. It’s a back-and-forth between control and discovery. And even though each piece takes time, I always know when it’s done, its an internal feeling. Then I’m ready to begin again.
Lady Zataar, 2021
Earthenware, glaze
M: What first drew you to ceramics?
LE: It first entered my life almost by accident, as a final undergraduate credit I needed to complete. From the moment I touched clay, it felt like a language I had always known. I was drawn to its intimacy, the way it holds on to every gesture, preserving something soft and fleeting in a form that endures. Working with clay is humbling and instinctive. It flows with a certain ease yet carries its own will, holding a delicate balance between intention and unpredictability. Colors and textures can be carefully layered, but in the end, the kiln decides how the story will be told.
M: Are there any recurring shapes or forms in your work that feel especially meaningful to you?
LE: Certain figures return to me like familiar characters, such as birds, horses, snakes, and lions, alongside recurring florals, patterned surfaces, and engraved marks. Each carries shifting meanings of freedom, transformation, power, and containment, changing with context. Vessels also reappear as keepers of memory, holding fragments from my Middle Eastern and Scottish heritage.
These forms belong to a larger collage where symbols, materials, and textures weave into nonlinear narratives. They are a personal vocabulary that moves between the symbolic and the physical, the planned and the unexpected. Patterns repeat like refrains, and shapes often transform, a flower into a starburst, a horse into a vessel, each time inhabiting a new role.
M: Do you usually plan your pieces ahead of time, or do you work more intuitively?
LE: My process is rooted in intuition, especially when working with clay and coiling methods. While I usually begin with a concept and some loose sketches, the form often evolves in unexpected ways. I tend to build several coiled vessels at once: one as a near replica of the original idea, another that gently diverges, and a third that responds freely to the moment. There is structure in my approach, especially when I introduce more controlled elements like stencils, molds, or cutouts, but I like to leave space for improvisation and transformation. This balance carries into glazing, where layers and overlays can result in either failure or unexpected beauty. Sometimes it is a quiet surprise, other times it requires a complete refiring process until the right surface emerges.
LAUREN ELDER
My work asks how the objects of our present might be read in the future, and what they might reveal about the time and context from which they came, just as ancient vessels continue to speak to us today.
M: Could you share any upcoming exhibitions, projects, or collaborations that we should keep an eye out for?
LE: My husband, an architect, and I recently bought a home in South Fayetteville, just a few blocks from campus, which we’re transforming into an indoor-outdoor exhibition space. We’re creating a sculpture garden and curating a group show with graduate and undergraduate artists, opening in mid-September with work installed throughout the garden and parts of the house.
The space is meant to be more than a gallery; it’s a site for art and happenings, somewhere between a home and a gathering place. I’m interested in how sculpture, ceramics, performance, and installation can come together in ways that feel intentional yet personal, creating room for experimentation and conversation outside of institutional settings.
Book of Queens, 2023
Earthenware, glaze, gold luster, wood, grout
M: How do you envision your work in relation to architectural and interior design?
LE: My work often moves between art and design, especially in how sculptural forms interact with space. As an artist based in Los Angeles for the past decade, I’ve become increasingly interested in how objects live within interiors and how they influence the mood, rhythm, and texture of a room. Many of my pieces function beyond the pedestal: vessels, mirrors, lighting elements, and planters that carry both a sculptural presence and a sense of use.Some of these works have been acquired by interior designers or featured in showroom settings, including Kelly Wearstler, Thomas Lavin, and Una Milan. In the future I would like to create more custom, site-specific work.
Special thank you to Lauren for sharing her practice with us! You can learn even more about her HERE.
Article Credits
Headshot by Kes Efstathiou