Adelaide Elkin is a multi-media printmaker, ceramicist, sculptor, and installation artist. Their work is both about nature and made of it, transforming found, handmade, and organic materials into forms that challenge the traditional moulds of printmaking. Through a DIY approach, Elkin reimagines historically inaccessible processes, radicalizing printmaking as an open, evolving, and deeply tactile medium.
For Elkin, creating is a direct collaboration with the natural world—both in concept and material. Papermaking, in particular, embodies this philosophy: extracting fiber from plants and transforming it into a new, workable material feels almost alchemical, a process ripe for innovation and discovery. Their practice is guided by a fascination with what lies beneath the surface—processes of decay, interspecific symbioses, and microbial landscapes.
Using copper plate intaglio techniques, hand paper-making, bookbinding, and clay, Elkin’s work takes form in overlapping and nesting structures, and recurring motifs such as diamonds, pelts, and seeds. Twinkles of bright color, shine, and contrast emerge subtly from the expected textures of organic material, prompting closer inspection. This interplay mirrors the curiosity and wonder of uncovering hidden beauty—a recognition of the often-overlooked marvels happening just beneath our feet.
At its core, Elkin’s work challenges the human-imposed superiority complex and imaginary separation from the natural world. Through universally recognized forms and motifs, they attempt to make obvious—sometimes with a wry touch of condescension—the undeniable ways that we are nature, and that the livelihood of every other living organism matters equally to ours. The urgency of truly knowing this connection lies in one’s ability to reckon with the destruction of ecosystems, the acceleration of species loss, and the implications of a rapidly warming planet; feeling pain and empathy for these causes is what ignites change.
Education
2020 - 2024 Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) | BFA Printmaking | Concentration: Nature Culture Sustainability Studies (NCSS) | Providence, Rhode Island
2018 - 2020 Walnut Hill School for the Arts | Visual Art
Experience
2025 - Present
Art Handler and Installer | Tufts University Art Galleries (TUAG) | Boston, MA
2024 - 2025
Research & Workshop Assistant | Zea Mays Printmaking Studio | Florence, MA
Department Representative | Student Alliance | Rhode Island School of Design | Providence, RI
Studio Technician | Papermaking | Rhode Island School of Design | Providence, RI
2024 Teaching Assistant | Printing With Discard| Rhode Island School of Design | Providence, RI
Awards and Honors
2024 Printmaking Department Senior Award | Rhode Island School of Design | Presented annually to one graduating senior of the department.
Senior Invitational Exhibition | Rhode Island School of Design | Senior thesis project was selected for inclusion in the interdepartmental end of year exhibit.
Exhibitions
2024 Portsmouth Print Expo & Exhibition | 3S Artspace | Portsmouth, NH
Senior Invitational Exhibition | Woods Gerry Gallery | Rhode Island School of Design| Providence, RI
Printmaking Senior Degree Project Exhibition | Woods Gerry Gallery | Rhode Island School of Design| Providence, RI
Living Urn | Gelman Gallery | Rhode Island School of Design | Providence, RI
2023 Mural Month is May | Friends of Public Art | Public Installation | Keene, NH
Printmaking Triennial | Woods Gerry Gallery | Rhode Island School of Design | Providence, RI
Safe In my Garden | Gelman Gallery | Rhode Island School of Design | Providence, RI
Wild Landscapes and Genderless Bodies | Memorial Hall Gallery Rhode Island School of Design | Providence, RI
Paper Chemistry | Waterman Gallery | Rhode Island School of Design | Providence, RI
Publications/features
Adelaide Elkin & Trone Quigley. “Baking Soda Aquatint.” Zea Mays Printmaking, 2024-25. https://zeamaysprintmaking.podia.com/baking-soda-aquatint
“Queer Planet: Celebration of Biodiversity” Orion Magazine. Spring 2025, Volume 44 | NO. 1