“The name Mud Mothers is so seventies,” Elaine observes.

But at the time it was very appropriate.  She and a friend, Sarah Jane Ingraham, were both mothers of young children and were both drawn to the delights of turning mud into beautiful pots.  Eventually, the friend moved on to other interests, but pottery became Elaine’s passion and life’s work.

“Even as our world moves to a global economy with ever-advanced technologies, our spirit is still moved by the hand-made piece. The mark of the hand remains essential to our personal expression,”  Elaine says.

After studying at the Penland School of Crafts in Penland, North Carolina,  her style evolved into a carving process called “sgraffito”.  The clay, after being carved, is painted with ceramic underglaze stains and bisque fired.

“I tell stories in clay,” she says.  “There are images I carve over and over again — things that have significance for me, like books, wine glasses, coffee cups…”

For many years Elaine owned a successful studio/gallery in Medina’s historic district.  Currently she divides her time between a sunlit studio behind her restored Victorian house, and her North Carolina mountain retreat where she has a second home and studio.

She can be reached at enlamb@verizon.net.