After More Than a Decade in Architecture, Marika Nad Turned to Clay Almost on Instinct – and It Brought Her Back to Herself

Marika Nad is a sculptor in Surrey, England, who makes botanical bas-reliefs in air-dry clay and figurative porcelain sculptures. She worked in architecture and interior design from 2012; in February 2025, while caring for her son after he broke his leg, she turned to clay almost instinctively – and by May she had decided to give sculpture a real chance.

Marika’s work usually begins with an idea, a memory or a feeling, often from something she has observed in nature. She uses air-dry clay for her botanical bas-reliefs and porcelain for her figurative sculptures, and builds everything by hand. She may start with a rough sketch but rarely follows it exactly. A large bas-relief can take six to eight weeks.

Marika doesn’t work to fixed designs: her work is deeply intuitive, and pieces made from a set design never gave her the same emotional connection. She is open to collaborations with architects and interior designers on projects that leave her creative freedom – original sculptural work made in response to a space.

Marika isn’t selling her sculptures yet – she is keeping her works together while she submits them to exhibitions and open calls. Interest comes through Instagram and TikTok, where she shares her process; people message her about particular pieces, mostly from the UK, and are welcome to contact her about future availability.

In February 2025, Marika’s son broke his leg. She was looking after him and struggling with the anxiety and emotional weight of the situation when, almost instinctively, she turned to clay. She had experimented with it a little at university but had never seriously pursued sculpture. “Working with my hands brought me a sense of calm that I hadn’t expected.” The piece she made then was a botanical bas-relief of a flowering apple tree with hummingbirds. Only later did she begin to understand why she had chosen it.

Marika was born in Lithuania. When she was four, her family experienced a devastating loss: her brother and uncle died in a car accident. The family moved to a new house in a new country, and she remembers feeling very alone. But the house had an enormous garden filled with apple and pear trees. Her father hung a swing from one of the apple trees, and she spent hours there, surrounded by blossoms, watching the seasons change. “That garden became a place of comfort and safety.” Years later, without consciously planning it, she found herself recreating the very image that had once brought her peace as a child.

The family returned to Lithuania when she was around six, and she lived there until she was seventeen. She later studied Architectural Technology at Robert Gordon University in Aberdeen, Scotland, and began working in architecture and interior design in 2012 – a career she genuinely loved. When she started working with clay, a private lesson with the sculptor Orli Ivanov, who shared her knowledge generously, inspired her. By May 2025 Marika knew she wanted to give sculpture a real chance.

“It wasn’t simply a career change. It felt like a return to myself.”

Marika’s work usually begins with an idea, a memory or a feeling, often inspired by something she has observed in nature. She works with air-dry clay for her botanical bas-reliefs and porcelain for her figurative sculptures. Although she may begin with a rough sketch, she prefers to let the material and the composition guide her. “A botanical relief gradually grows from its surface. A branch changes direction, a petal takes on a different curve, and sometimes an entire composition develops into something I hadn’t originally imagined.”

Video: Marika Nad

Her porcelain project DEVA explores the female body and its connection to nature through fragmented sculptural forms. She has created several different faces and reconsidered the composition along the way; one of the earlier faces eventually became part of another figure in the series. “I don’t want to simply reproduce an image. I want to discover something through making it.” A large bas-relief can take six to eight weeks – Hummingbirds measures 87 × 62 cm, Magnolia 70.5 × 50 cm.

Finishing a piece is the strangest part for her. At the start she tends to see everything that could have been better; then time passes, she begins to see it differently and gradually falls in love with it – and feels sad that it’s finished. “Perhaps that’s why I find it difficult to part with my sculptures. By the time they’re finished, they have become part of my own story.”

Hummingbirds, her earliest botanical bas-relief, inspired by childhood memories of a flowering apple orchard; Magnolia, a sculptural exploration of organic movement and botanical form; Hydrangea Vessel, which grew from quiet moments observing flowers in her garden; Golden Flight; and DEVA, her ongoing porcelain series exploring femininity, transformation and the connection between the female body and nature.

Marika isn’t selling her work yet, although she has received enquiries from people interested in particular pieces, mainly from the UK. “My priority is to establish my identity as an artist and build a meaningful body of work before moving towards sales and private collections.” When she submitted her larger bas-reliefs to open calls, she gave an indicative starting price of €3,000 – a reference point for future sales rather than a current selling price.

Without a shop or a traditional customer base, the interest in Marika’s work has come organically through Instagram and TikTok, where she shares her creative process. People contact her privately to ask about particular sculptures, and some have said they’d like to buy them when they become available.

Behind-the-scenes moments create the strongest connection. “People become interested not only in the finished sculpture, but also in the decisions, changes and experiments that shape it.” Those posts have led to personal messages, conversations about her work and enquiries about particular pieces.

Exhibitions and open calls are her other route. Her Hydrangea Vessel reached the later selection stage for the Hastings Open at Hastings Contemporary, although it wasn’t selected for the final exhibition. Magnolia also progressed through the selection process for No. 35 Gallery’s Botanical International Online Group Exhibition 2026. She has submitted work to other opportunities, including the Aesthetica Art Prize and ArtEvol.

“Leaving architecture was probably one of the most frightening decisions I’ve made.” After more than a decade building a career, Marika was afraid of losing her financial independence, her professional experience and the stability she had worked so hard to create. She worried about loneliness, about being judged, and about her artistic abilities. “But the thought of giving up sculpture felt even more difficult.”

Golden Flight taught her something unexpected. Unlike her other sculptures, she followed her original sketch very closely. “Although I’m pleased with the technical result, I never felt the same emotional connection to it.” It showed her that she needs freedom and spontaneity in her process – and she still values the piece because it helped her understand what matters most to her as an artist. She has also had to start parts of sculptures again, including several attempts at the faces for DEVA.

The turning point wasn’t one dramatic moment. It was a gradual realisation that she couldn’t continue living exactly as she had before. She had spent years adapting to different stages of life – moving countries, building a career, becoming a mother and balancing everyone’s needs with her own. “For the first time in a long while, I had something that belonged entirely to me. There were no deadlines, no expectations and no need to prove anything. I could simply create.” By May 2025 she knew she wanted to give sculpture a real chance.

Marika is continuing her DEVA porcelain series and submitting work to exhibitions. She is planning to add an art section to her website, and she would love to collaborate with architects and interior designers on projects where she can create original sculptural work in response to a space – bringing together her years in architecture and interiors and her sculpture.

“Marika Nad is a UK-based sculptural artist creating botanical bas-reliefs and porcelain sculptures inspired by nature, memory and femininity. Her work explores transformation, the beauty of the female form and the emotional connection between people and the natural world.”

Have a question for Marika about her work or a commission, or a few words about her story and work? Leave them in the comments at the end of this story.

Who: Marika Nad
What: Botanical bas-reliefs in air-dry clay and figurative porcelain sculpture
Where: Surrey, England, UK
Started: February 2025
Audience: 2,480 Instagram followers, 230 on TikTok
Price range: Larger bas-reliefs from around €3,000 (indicative – not selling yet)
Custom orders: No
Works with designers: Open to it
Channels: Social Media