Artist Spotlight on Lauren Elder
History is often understood through the objects that endure. Fragments of pottery, carved symbols, and weathered vessels become records of the people who made them, carrying stories across generations. For artist Lauren Elder, ceramics offer a way to examine ancestry, material culture, and the passage of time while imagining what traces our own moment might leave behind. In Field Notes on Memory, Elder’s sculptural works enter into conversation with Flora Saldivar’s atmospheric paintings, exploring memory through both tangible form and imagined landscape. In the conversation below, Elder reflects on heritage, intuition, and the enduring legacy of the objects we create.
On Artistic Influences
MIXD: Much of your work explores ideas of history, ancestry, and time. Where does that interest begin for you?
LAUREN ELDER: A lot of my work focuses on time and ancestry. I draw from my Iraqi, Persian, Scottish, and British heritage, looking at artifacts and symbols to better understand where I come from and how I exist within this moment. I’m interested in how these histories become part of my own visual language and personal representation.
On Material
M: Your sculptures feel both intentional and deeply intuitive. What is your relationship with clay?
LE: Clay is an incredibly intuitive material. You feel it, you touch it, and you respond to it. I like to create an environment where I can really settle into that process—adjusting the lights, putting on music, and allowing myself to enter a kind of imaginative world where the work begins to guide me as much as I guide it.
Someone asked me recently, “How do you know when a piece is finished?” I thought that was such an interesting question. For me, it’s when the walls feel consistent, enough material has been refined away, and there’s simply a moment where it feels right.
On Future Fossils
M: You’ve described these works as “future fossils.” What does that idea mean to you?
LE: The work is rooted in archaeology and the long history of ceramics. Early vessels became some of humanity’s first records—they carried symbols, stories, and knowledge. My trilogy vessels became a framework for exploring that history, and now I’m interested in expanding those ideas into more sculptural forms.
I love the idea of “future fossils.” I think about our generation, this particular moment in time, and how it might one day be understood through the objects we leave behind. Ceramics have the ability to outlast us. These pieces may exist long after we’re gone, becoming artifacts that tell future generations something about who we were.
LAUREN ELDER
I think about our generation, this particular moment in time, and how it might one day be understood through the objects we leave behind. Ceramics have the ability to outlast us.
Article Credits
Artist Portrait by Kes Efstathiou
Videography & Studio Visit Imagery by Hone Creative Studio