Elena Makarov

Elena Makarov Biography

United States

I have been born in Russia, Moscow but almost all my adulthood I live in United States.

I remember myself to be avid sculptor constantly making Play -Doh figures since early childhood. I use my signature ‘Elena Ya ‘to make tribute to my fraternal grandmother, who first taught me to love nature and seek to reach out to so many hidden secretes and treasures in it.

I always considered my sculpting as a ‘child play’ and only after having accomplished myself professionally and financially in United States, I have time, means and positive energy to pursue my ‘inner child play’ – sculpting as a most responsible and serious step and accomplishment in my adult life.

I am trying to reach deep hidden inner selves through my ceramic sculptures, to open our inner self, to find out our deeply long forgotten inner child, our childhood memories including joys and fears and even nightmares. My sculptures embrace my background (MA) in different types of literature such as international folk tales, fairytales and classic literature. I took Art/Clay classes in my youth in Eastern Europe and at Moscow Fine Arts University.

I try to create different figures and scenes from depth of mind and heart;  and tell stories that have been probably influenced by my favorite art works of Dali, Chagall, Bosch and Miro, Literature by Brothers Grimm , Hesse, Kafka’s novellas and  Dostoevsky,  Bunin and Bulgakov reaching out to our roots of fears and inner controversies, that take roots from childhood, fighting our childhood fears and at the same time finding solace in them.  Exploring the nature of femininity, modern stereotypes, and new archetypes of femininity starting from our inner childhood memories of the first walk in the forest, first swim in the ocean, first taste of grandmother’s apple pie and ice cream, first story of a fairy tale that has been read at nighttime, even first nightmare experienced in a sleep.

I usually work with white or brown clay and use mostly underglazes and clear gloss glazes.

If an independent viewer would be able to see something close, dear and even secret in my ceramic sculptures , then my ceramic creations  have accomplished their first steps to future self and inner discovery and are ready to hold a viewer's hand  on a way to the scary but exciting  adventures into our  inner world and surrounding nature.