I am a ceramic sculptor who is exploring the space that shadow creates, using surface, depth, and light to invite a slow, meditative quality of looking.
What I make is modular bas-relief ceramic wall sculpture - tile by tile, by hand, with intention. Each piece is built to gather shadow and shift with the light. To quietly inhabit a wall and provide an opportunity to slow down.
The Process
Each piece I make is makde out out hundreds of small decisions and touches of my hands. It follows the shape of my fingers and you can sometimes spot my fingertips. I intuitively shape the clay to create valleys for the shadows and peaks for gentle highlights. Ceramics is a labour of love and a lesson in patience. The process of creating each tile for an artpiece takes about a month. Below you can read a breakdown of what it entails.
PREPARE THE CLAY
I prepare blocks of clay and let it dry out for about 24h. This way the clay is semi leather hard - dryer so it's easier to work with but still malleable.
SCULPT
I slowly sculpt the tiles by both carving them and adding extra clay into the piece, depending on what it needs. The sculpting process is inspired by nature but also very intuitive.
The same day I also attach the back supports so it's possible to hang it later.
DRY
This is the longest part of the process and it takes 2-3 weeks. I conciously slow down the drying process to allow it to dry evenly.
Once it's fully dry, it's fired in a ceramic kiln for the first time to 1000°. It takes at least 24h before I can open the kiln.
2-4 layers of glaze are evenly applied, always making sure that the previous layer is fully dry.
Another firing, this time to a higher temperature. Another 24h or so.
I sand the bottom of each piece to make sure it won't scratch the wall it's hanging on or the person handling the piece. It's a slightly dull but an important step.
I attach picture wire so each tile can hang.
I hope you can enjoy it season after season as the intensity of the shadows change and shift.
INVITING SHADOWS
'Inviting shadows' is collection of absctract ceramic wall sculpture.
Each tile is rich with shadows thanks to the variation in texture, shapes and depth. It's an attempt to make them the quiet concern of the piece, not a byproduct. To have it slowly change as the morning light fills the room and then slowly transitions into a harsher noon glare. And then to see it again in an evening mood lighting. And again, in a few months, in a low and lateral December haze.
It includes 4-nature inspired finish options: Undergrowth, Mottled Stone, Dark Terroir, Still Water.
It's the first collection of ceramic wall art by Aneta Elder released in September 2026.
