Ceramics hold a special kind of magic, each piece unique and imperfectly beautiful. The beauty deepens when there’s a story behind the clay, and that’s certainly the case with Elena Strohfeldt from Elso Collective.
Raw in texture, but also in the stories and emotions behind them. We were honoured to hear Elena’s heartfelt story, learning how art can be therapy as well as showcase beauty. This is a story you’re not going to want to miss.
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Elena’s journey to becoming an artist was a surprising one.
“No one in my immediate family is an artist so my creativity kind of came out of nowhere,” Elena recalls. “The first person to notice it was my year 4 teacher, and from here, my parents helped nurture my love for art by enrolling me in a high school with a special art program.
“During this time, my teacher and mentor, Mr Grant, encouraged me to experiment with all art forms. From ceramics to printmaking and painting. Under his guidance, I won a number of art prizes and really found what I loved to create.
“I took a different turn at university, studying a Bachelor of Science, majoring in Psychology. I felt disconnected from my art for a decade. The pressures of doing something practical and finding a career were smothering.
“In 2018 I suffered a traumatising assault and art became my therapy. I went back to painting, reigniting my creativity. Then of course came 2020! During the lockdown in Melbourne a friend gifted me a pottery kit.
What started as therapy to work through the anxiety of COVID became a new art form I fell in love with. Ever since then ceramics has been my focus.
Elena’s raw ceramics are more than just beautiful objects. Many of them tell a story — a form of therapy in their own right.
“In 2024, I sadly lost my baby. I suffered an ectopic pregnancy that ruptured. I had to go to the emergency room and was then rushed to surgery to save my life,” Elena recalls.
“No one I knew had gone through what I had. Ectopic pregnancy affects only 1% of all pregnancies, and even less rupture. But as I spoke about it more on my socials and found an online community, I realised I wasn’t alone. And the feelings I was experiencing were totally normal.
“After much healing, I realised that it was not my fault. And while these feelings still rise to the surface every now and then, they are not crippling. I made the GOLD collection because I wanted others to not feel as alone as I did.
I also wanted to shine a light on pregnancy loss. 25% of pregnancies end in a miscarriage and yet it isn’t talked about nearly enough.
“I continue to use my art as therapy. While ceramics are my current passion project, I still paint too. After I suffered my miscarriage, I painted a series that sits in my home today, as a reminder of how it is possible to turn trauma into something beautiful.
Art is a way to work through it, not shy away from it but grow.
There is no end to Elena’s artistic talents. She paints, creates ceramics and designs jewellery.
“I think as we grow, so does our practice and the way our creativity manifests itself,” smiles Elena.
“Moving between each medium is more of an evolution of my practice. I shifted from painting, to jewellery design and then landed on ceramics.
“Ceramics for me is where all my creative focus goes now. I prefer to use earthy tones and textured clay and love keeping my work raw on the outside and glazed on the inside.
It’s a symbolisation of how we shouldn’t always remain polished on the outside. I like to be very honest in my life and that is reflected in my art.
“Painting is very much my therapy. I don’t really sell it any more, though maybe one day that might change. Jewellery is something in the past, although I still love wearing the creations I designed.”
Elena’s raw ceramics are created from experimentation and learning to trust the process.
“When I am creating a new collection, I start with shapes. I draw different designs until I like around 5 to 10. My preference is to keep my collections small and intimate,” Elena says.
“Then I upload them into Canva and play around with screenshots I have saved of different clay. This is actually how my LAYERS collection came to me in 2023. I played around with layering different clays and was surprised with how well it worked!
“Once I have my vision ready, I’ll then create the collection. Sometimes I start making a piece with no direction in mind and just let my hands take control.
Ceramics has definitely taught me to let go of control. It shows me how something beautiful can come when you least expect it.
Elena’s beautiful pieces have captured the attention of celebrities, magazines and design publications.
“Seeing my work in printed magazines like House of Garden, Vogue Living and Belle was surreal. Reading my feature in The Design Files was also a career defining moment for me,” smiles Elena.
“My art is still my side hustle. I work full time in marketing, but these features made me realise that I can actually make a career out of my art. All because I reached out to stylists and pitched myself. It’s crazy what happens when you start to believe in yourself.
“I’m also really proud of being a finalist in the National Emerging Art Prize last year. Art prizes are not the motivation for me. But I am only human and it feels really nice being recognised by such an esteemed panel of judges.”
We love the idea of art as therapy and healing. It’s both beautiful and inspiring. Thank you so much to Elena for sharing her stories with us and her raw ceramics art.
To see more of Elena’s work, be sure to check out the Elso Collective website and Instagram. You can also follow Elena’s personal Instagram page for even more raw and real arty chats.
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