About

Hello… My name is Elaise Piper and I’m an artist living in Portland, Oregon, after being in Los Angeles for the last 18 years. I’m focusing on ceramics these days and recently realized I took my first clay class at the University of Minnesota, after falling in love with mosaic and tile on a trip to Italy. (The entire inside of Basilica San Marco in Venice is covered in mosaic!!!! You guys!!!)

I moved to LA from Minnesota to pursue acting and to see what kind of trouble I could get into on the West Coast. I graduated from the American Academy of Dramatic Arts and was invited back to perform as a guest artist in the Academy Company. I pursued acting full time for a few years before I found myself knee deep in the world of photography, assisting a world class celebrity and fashion photographer, and learning more than I can ever convey about the professions of creation and design.

I also continued to take ceramics classes at the Barnsdall Art Center in Silverlake, throwing pots in a Frank Lloyd Wright building overlooking Hollywood, and then at the Los Angeles Valley College in the much less impressive Valley, but in the much more tricked out College studio. Graphic design became another fun outlet later in my LA years, doing flyers and advertising for a club I ran, and then with the fantastic LA band, the Dance Hall Pimps.

Along the way I’ve: modeled, hosted a nightclub in Hollywood, designed and constructed latex clothing, recorded a couple of songs, and love to knit when the season turns chilly. I also mix a mean drink and make a killer cappuccino. This site is an outlet for my creative life. If you like my work and would like to contact me about a project, please email at studioelaise (at) gmail (dot) com. And if you’d like to buy a piece of pottery, click here to go to my shop. Thanks!