Carmen Ellis Studio is a Los Angeles-based sculpture atelier that creates surrealist statement decor celebrating the beauty of the bizarre. The founder, Carmen Ellis, draws inspiration from her childhood fantasies of enchanted realms and aims to bring seemingly inanimate objects to life with human-like elements. The designs are intended to inspire a change in how we perceive and interact with objects of function. Learn more about these delightfully personified pieces in today’s Maker Monday.
The Flora & Fauna Lamps spotlight grace and beauty through a delicate balance of asymmetry.
Andrew Joseph: Describe your design style as if you were explaining it to someone who cannot see.
Carmen Ellis: I design surreal-inspired home decor objet. I currently specialize in the fragmented form—elements of the human body are singled out and merged with everyday items, like planters and lamps. My lines are clean and simple, inspired by art deco elegance. My current collections are cast in bronze and ceramic.
AJ: Style (or design) icon?
CE: The design duo Les Lalanne is a huge inspiration to me—their dedication to their aesthetic, exploration of scale and mediums, and collaboration with other inspiring designers. They perfectly straddled the design and art worlds. The body castings they created with Yves Saint Laurent will live rent-free in my mind forever.
The heels of the Footed Candle Holders gracefully lift to show off the candles they hold, having us imagine they may decide to walk off the table on which they are placed.
AJ: What’s one ingredient you put in everything?
CE: Body parts.
AJ: What might the design world look like in 10 years?
CE: Technology fascinates me, and I am always looking out for what’s new. All of my designs are viewable in 3D and AR; I 3D-print, CNC-mill, etc. Not so long ago, the accessibility of these technologies would have been to grasp.
It will take more than ten years, but I hypothesize that in the future, all homes could have 3D printers, and everyone will be able to print out their own furniture, home decor, and art. Imagine this: Let’s say I’d like a sculpture; I select one from a database of historical works, and 30 minutes later, I have a full-scale replica of Brancusi’s Sleeping Muse. Truly, we are not that far off.
A handmade, unscented soy and beeswax candle patiently sits on the ledge. The flame burns for 14 hours, and although this piece is made to burn, it is considered a wax sculpture, adding interest and charm to wherever she sits.
AJ: What’s the best thing that happened to you this month?
CE: I am launching my first collection of lighting: The Illumination Series. It’s been two years in the making, and I am thrilled to share these works with the world!
About the Maker | For as long as she can remember, Los Angeles designer Carmen Ellis has been captivated by the bizarre and unique.
Her inspiration can be traced back to childhood fantasies. As a young escapist, she dreamt of living in more enchanted realms—places like Alice’s peculiar Wonderland, a world with anthropomorphic flowers, talking caterpillars, and invisible cats; a land where reality is relative. This affinity for the surreal was the driving force behind her eponymous collection.
She currently creates objects inspired by the beauty of the bizarre. Hints of the human form spring out of what would be commonplace items, bringing life and whimsy to objects often otherwise overlooked.
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