Elena Mahno is a ceramic artist living and working between Toronto and New York. Born in Moldova, her early life across Eastern Europe and the Caucasus deeply informs her artistic perspective. With a background in visual arts, science, and design, she approaches clay with a research-driven process, creating intimate sculptural forms that lean toward abstraction. Her works are often produced in small series, each piece contributing to a larger, evolving narrative.

Mahno’s practice explores themes of transformation, womanhood, and untaken life paths. Her forms subtly evoke the feminine without direct representation, drawing on memories, traditional motifs like pinafores symbolizing women’s labor, and scientific imagery from her graduate studies. Through the timeless medium of clay, she embraces ambiguity and open-ended interpretation, offering quiet, contemplative reflections on identity and the hidden stories that shape human experience.