"Topography of a Leaf" – Sculptural Botanical Clock (2025) Sculpture by Alena Panchenia

From ion to Vocation.

Elena Panchenya is a contemporary master of artistic casting, creating elegant botanical bas-reliefs. Her creative journey exemplifies a bold transformation of life through art. At 40, she left her former career to fully dedicate herself to crafting floral artworks, turning a hobby into her life’s calling. Self-taught in the intricacies of her craft, the artist does not merely replicate nature—she breathes new life into plants, immortalizing their fragile beauty in gypsum. 

 “Each of my springs, summers, and autumns lives on in my bas-reliefs,”-says Elena.  

She brings this simple yet refined art to the masses. Her works are not just decor but a form of meditation. Meadow daisies, swaying grasses, and delicate flower blossoms—frozen in snow-white gypsum or revived with watercolor hues—become a bridge between humanity and nature.

  “Even in our modern world of gadgets and technology, the soul finds peace in nature,”-reflects Elena. “We rest and draw strength from it.”

Elena’s works feature crisp, highly detailed plant bas-reliefs and harmonious natural compositions. Every vein, petal curve, and leaf texture weaves intricate patterns across her s. She often collects meadow flowers and herbs while walking with her daughter and cultivates plants in her garden.  

“I’ve even picked up discarded plants from the roadside,”-Elena recalls. “Once, early in spring, I found a mimosa branch—so beautiful, yet unwanted. I couldn’t leave it.”

In winter, she incorporates tree branches, conifer sprigs, and fading store-bought blooms into her art, preserving their fleeting beauty.  

“I’m still gaining experience with custom orders, but all my clients have been delighted,”- she shares. “Most of my works emerge from creative impulses. I love experimenting, blending botanical bas-reliefs with diverse artistic styles and themes.”

Creating each piece demands patience, meticulous attention to detail, and respect for the plants. Elena crafts interior s in various sizes, blooming clock s with bas-reliefs, and vases.  

“By education, I’m an engineer, but my heart beats for art,”- she explains. “Surprisingly, my technical background fuels my creativity. For instance, I developed my own method for crafting textured vases with botanical bas-reliefs—they look so alive, people call them ‘living vases.”

Elena has also enhanced gypsum as a material, applying engineering solutions to make her works far more durable than traditional sculptural gypsum. 

“This was necessary,”- she notes, “as my bas-reliefs travel long distances to reach clients.”

Her mission is to preserve nature’s beauty for future generations and inspire people to see magic in every blade of grass. Her artworks carry a profound social message about ecology and humanity’s bond with the plant world.  Elena’s bas-reliefs remind us: Nature is eternal, even if its forms are fleeting.

• Nationality: BELARUS
• Date of birth : 1981
• Artistic domains:
• Groups: Contemporary Belarusian Artists