Elma spent her childhood on the Canadian prairies. Dreaming of becoming an artist, she attended Forum Art Institute in Winnipeg, Manitoba, under the direction of one of its founders, Nikola Bjelajac, and soon began showing her work publicly. Elma continued her studies at the University of Manitoba School of Art and on scholarships to the world-renowned Banff Centre for the Arts and Creativity in Alberta, Canada and acquired specific techniques from other recognized artists.

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After relocating from Manitoba to British Columbia, Elma continued to establish herself in art circles from Kelowna to Vancouver. She worked out of her home studio, Chateauroc, for three decades; from there both the beauty of the breathtaking Okanagan Valley and her travels abroad fuelled her work. It is during this time that she fully developed her unique, Torn-Edge Relief© style of collage. 

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Elma has recently rooted herself back in the prairies, just beyond the foothills of the Rockies, where she continues to work from a new studio space in Medicine Hat, Alberta, in view of the inspiring, layered rocks of the nearby coulees. 

 

Artist Statement: I believe that whatever I create expresses my life experiences - of who I am and of what I have encountered. Each exploration, each decision, adds another layer and another line to my artistic exposition. The stronger, earthy lines and textures in my work represent reality - like the earth underfoot - while the rhythmic lines of the torn edges symbolize the ethereal aspects of the soul, reborn into my collage and painting.