Elena Renker^[30]

Renowned New Zealand potter Elena Renker’s work has been selected over the years for numerous awards, she has enjoyed international attention with invitations to participate in international shows, exhibitions and she’s shared her craft with fellow potters abroad.

Renker's many years of curiosity, study and tireless application of trial-and-error has made her work uniquely hers and very special to us.

Her work is fired up to 18 hours at 1300ºC in the wood-fired kiln she built on her North Auckland property. There’s a love for the subtle colour and wood ash deposits that affect the Shino glaze. Renker frequently adds natural elements such as pinecones and cabbage tree leaves to the firing process to achieve unexpected outcomes.

Elena’s aim is not perfection, on the contrary, her belief is 'imperfections make the bowls come alive, make them easier to relate to, make them more human. 'Nature’s perfection lies within its own asymmetry.'