Elaine Peto

Elaine set up her studio in Hampshire in 1987 after graduating from Exeter College of Art & Design. Since then she has developed a reputation making animal sculptures. 

Most of her subjects are agricultural animals, hares and dogs. Her love of the animal kingdom stems from childhood when her favourite toys were a farm and riding stable, absorbing her attention for hours on end.  Occasionally she works on exotic wild animals such as elephants, giraffes and antelopes.  She has a passion for Africa and spent months working in the bush studying the wildlife. 

“My fascination for anatomy goes as far back as I can remember. My aim is to capture the piece from inside to out from stretching slabs of clay to form a rib cage, rump, neck etc, right down to the feet. The challenge is combining an anatomical approach with capturing the essence of the creature. Texture plays a large part in most pieces. I love to work with different pieces of fabric, shells, netting and brushes which are impressed into the clay, forming a reference to animal hide and brand marks, or sometimes just for pure indulgence.”