2025, Outdoor Installation, photography, chalk on canvas, ink on canvas, mix media.
“A testament to human negation and a stark reminder of life’s fragility, the impermanence of our existence.” E.A. Tofte
Seven partially felled trees, in the deep forestland, joined together in a collective embrace, almost sacred looking, narrating tales of lives once lived. Reflecting on the urgency of our interconnected terrain.
Are we destined to the book of history or merely the recycling bin?
2025, photoprint, chalk, pencil, paper, wood, fabric, yarn, ruins, Dead Hedge
“The once private has never really belonged to us.” E.A. Tofte
Observing * Collecting data * Measuring * Counting * Mapping * Observing further
Exploring the sense of belonging, embodied experiences, echoes of the forest.
Something ancient, deeply rooted within us- a survival instinct, resilience.
Profound connections that bind us, both living and non-human forms.
2025, Outdoor Installation, seasons, wood, fabric, smoke, light
“The space between individual and collective sphere.” E.A. Tofte
Socially * Culturally * Politically
Private-Local- National-International-Global
By opening my home to the public, I invite a dialogue around shared narratives. This gesture reflects the ongoing negotiations between personal freedoms and collective governance, explores the tension between individual identity and cultural heritage. In a globalized world, where collective social norms, movements and communities continuously evolve. This space becomes a site for reflection and exchange.
2025, Outside Installation, Wood, fabric, organic material, photography, pencil, paper
“A fluid pathway, a rhythm between distant territories.” E.A. Tofte
Travelling in and out becomes a dialogue with change, shifting values globally. Safety of the uncontrollable motion of nature, albeit subdued and restrained choices of others. Reclaiming land, building walls only to witness their disappearance.
My art is not political, but it is linked to what is happening around me.
What binds one to a place? A memory, collective act, assurance?
2024, Outside Installation, Wood, Fabric, Crane, Screws, Photography
“Wrapping as an act of care.” E.A. Tofte
Creating reality as an extension of my past experiences. Carefully gathered bed sheets around delicate bodies reflect on vulnerability, impermanence, and the ambiguity of suffering. Uncertainty beneath the fabric projects the fragility of life and every living thing. Uniformly standing together, they resemble a palliative care unit.
The physicality of the large-scale installation I was interested in exploring becomes fragmented up close. Each tree trunk forms a character, becoming more dominant as the seasons pass. The anxious, outward-reaching branches ask: “How long is left?”
What happens when the pain becomes silent?
Is fear in the body of darkness?
In the unmeasurable distance?
Or in the feathers of a dead bird looking away?
In the row of coffins?
In a burial ground we create?
Between the rising and setting sun?
In the number of steps it takes to climb the ladder?
In the elevation of unfamiliar technology?
Or in the lens of the camera we hold?
In the uncaptured image before our eyes?
Or looking through the lens?
Am I the fear?
Artist talk
E.A. Tofte
John Burns
Eleanora Alis and John are both students at the Open College of Art, an online higher education institution. Despite never having met in person, they are now collaborating on their fourth project together.
John studies Photography, while E.A. is pursuing Fine Art. Their decision to create a film together emerged organically from a conversation following their first group project. As E.A. is approaching her final show, she struggled to connect the pieces of her recordings from the past two years. She reached out to John, who had already started to explore film making and inviting him to collaborate—not just to bridge those gaps, but also to explore how their artistic practices could merge.
Over time, they discovered numerous connections between their creative approaches. Most importantly, they shared a deep understanding of each other’s work and developed a strong, structured work ethic.
When they first met, neither had much experience with creative collaboration. But the timing was right, their ideas aligned, and their process evolved into a natural rhythm. Their first joint piece, Transient, is a video work that you can view below.
This is an email dialogue they had after completing the video…. (June 2025)
Organic matter, found objects, mixed media
“My work explores the sublime intersection of traditional painting and contemporary sculpture.” E.A. Tofte
Working across mediums, my landscapes reflect on ecological terrain as a space where memory and identity are continuously reshaped. I use organic matter, found objects, and everyday materials—often incorporating gold—to evoke both the sacred and the discarded. These elements are not merely decorative; they serve as carriers of history, transformation, and resilience.
By merging the visual language of traditional painting with the physicality of contemporary sculpture, my work blurs boundaries between surface and form, permanence and decay. Each piece invites viewers into a tactile dialogue with nature, encouraging reflection on the fragility of ecosystems and the layered narratives embedded in material culture.