Artwork copyright Elissa Greisz. Photo courtesy of the artist.

They Came from the Sea, 1995

Elissa Greisz
American (born 1939)

Location: Emerson Elementary School, Pasco

About the Artwork

They Came from the Sea is an elaborate and vibrant mixed-media artwork by artist Elissa Greisz. It is composed in a multi-layered process using paint, glitter, and small pieces of iridescent foil on linoleum tiles. This piece is part of a series of artworks that depict the movement and transformation of an underwater scene.

This artwork was acquired for the State Art Collection in partnership with Pasco School District.

About the Artist

Elissa Greisz is a Port Townsend, Washington-based artist who creates abstract mixed-media wall sculptures, paintings, and weavings. Her work emphasizes intricate patterns. She notes “I borrow from Byzantine art, my Mexican heritage, sci-fi illustrations, other art, ornamentation, jewelry and tattoos. And the transformation of inert materials becomes my modern-day alchemy.”
Greisz studied at the University of California, Santa Barbara. She received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Visual Art and Anthropology from the University of California, Los Angeles. She moved to Washington State in 1983.