Inga Elín

Ceramicist

©Ivar Eythorsson

©Alexander Mani Karason

Combining colour and form in clay

Inga likes to create directly with the material
Her designs are bold and playful
She began studying art at 12 years of age

Inga Elín has dedicated her life to working with a variety of materials, but clay is her true passion. She loves the freedom her career brings and can’t imagine not being creative every day. In her sculptural and lighting work she uses a playful array of natural and animal forms to create arresting one off pieces. The influences of her Icelandic surroundings are clearly visible in this work. Her homeware range uses simple forms with luscious surface finishes; from classic and bold black and white designs, to her opulent gold collection. In 2020, she opened a new gallery, with her son, at exactly the location where she had had a gallery 25 years ago – a type of homecoming.

Interview

©Ivar Eythorsson

©Baldvin Vernhardsson

Where you creative from a young age?: Yes, I remember in school, age 12, we drew big images using charcoal which were exhibited on the walls of the school. My mum’s friend saw my pictures and encouraged my mother to send me to Reykjavík School of Art – which she did a year later.
Where did you study after school?: I went to the Icelandic Academy of Arts, then I studied ceramics and glass in Denmark at Skolen For Brugskunst. I was the first student to graduate from two departments simultaneously and received an award from Queen Margarethe for my graduation project.
What attracts you to working with clay?: I love working with porcelain, stoneware, cement, glass – but clay for me is especially charming. Turning something so soft into a solid object, the chemical reaction during the firing, the spirals on the wheel and the touch of the brush when painting on it.
Can you tell us a memorable moment in your professional life?: In 2007, I got a mysterious call asking me to bring my biggest pieces to Reykjavík Harbour “to meet someone very special.” For security reasons they couldn’t reveal the identity of the person. It turned out to be Sir Elton John, he wanted to meet me and buy some of my pieces for his art collection.

Inga Elín is a master artisan: she began her career in 1975 and she started teaching in 1977