Elizabeth Englander, an artist working primarily in assemblage with materials like children's furniture, nutcrackers, and old clothing, discusses her recent exhibitions and spiritual approach to art in an interview with Nick Irvin for Flash Art. The conversation covers her show "The Elizabethan Lumber Room" (2026) at a. SQUIRE in London, the modular barrister's bookcase inherited from her mother, and her "Parinirvana" series (2025) that explores themes of death and sacred art through papier-mâché, paint, and mylar. Englander also references influences such as Constantin Brâncuși, her graduate advisor Tom Weaver, and Erwin Panofsky's writings on tomb sculpture.
This article matters because it challenges the prevailing notion that serious modern art must be secular, highlighting how Englander openly integrates spiritual and contemplative themes into her practice without irony or critical distance. Her work bridges personal experience, art-historical study, and material experimentation, offering a counterpoint to the rationalist tradition in modernism. The interview provides insight into how contemporary artists can engage with sacred art traditions and mortality, making it relevant for discussions on the intersection of spirituality and contemporary visual art.