Liz McLelland is a self-taught wildlife artist working mainly in ceramics. She’s never happier than when she’s up to her elbows in wet clay trying to recreate the shape of a creature. Liz says, “When I sculpt an animal it is a journey that starts with an inspiring encounter. I start with sketches and reference photos, working by hand until the clay responds and a final form emerges. Working in clay is all the more compelling for its unpredictability and there’s little more unnerving and exciting than opening the kiln to discover how the oxides and glazes have chosen to interact with the clay this time (or indeed, if the fruits of many hours of labour have survived Nora, my kiln’s, attention).
Liz studied Foundation Art at Lincoln Art College in the 1990’s, was briefly side-tracked by a degree in Professional Media before starting a long career in the conservation sector. She has been entrusted with a number of commissions over the years – numerous portraits of beloved pets, a 47” marine mural in a private swimming pool, decorative murals for Bloor Homes’ show homes and a study of ancient oak as a special retirement gift. Liz bought her first proper kiln (the indomitable ‘NORA’) during lockdown in 2020 after discovering a love of, and talent for working in clay, with studies of animals being her particular happy place. In October 2021, Liz McLelland’s sculpture of a hare “Form” was selected for the Society of Wildlife Artists’ annual show “The Natural Eye” at the prestigious Mall Galleries in London, where it sold for £650.
Liz’s aim with her art is to capture something of the spirit of an animal, the subtleties of its movement and the awareness in its eyes. Most of all, she is trying to recreate that moment of wonder, the sense of being treated to something secret and precious that she feels every time she is lucky enough to observe wile animals in their natural habitat. The result is that everyone of her sculptures is entirely unique”
