This week the Russian born felt-maker Elena Bondar who has established a second career as an artist in her adopted country of Finland. Elena taught herself the art of wool and felt-making, and since 2010 she has been crafting bespoke wool paintings, infusing them, she says, with the strategic planning, self-reliance, and dedication to excellence honed during her athletic career. Elena was born in the Ural Mountains near Ekaterinburg, Russia in 1981—one of two children—she has an older brother, Andrey, to parents Svetlana Moskovskikh, a technology engineer, and Yuri Moskovskikh, a chemical engineer. She spent a happy childhood learning crafts from her mother and grandmother before attending the School of Art in Novouralsk for eight years. She then turned to sports at the Secondary School for Olympic Reserves, Ekaterinburg as a Specialist in Physical Education and Sports from 1999-2002 followed by the Ekaterinburg State Institute of Education for Physical Education Teaching from 2002-2007.  In addition to music and art school Elena also participated in sports such as volleyball and track and field. However, it wasn’t until she was16, with encouragement from her new coach, that she started taking sports seriously. Elena subsequently began a professional career, which led to becoming the 2009 European Rogaining Champion. She also competed in the 2009 World Ski-Orienteering Championships in Rusutsu, Japan, and Adventure Racing World Series in South Africa, Portugal, Sweden and Turkey. After retiring from pro sports, Elena moved to Finland where she met her partner Ville Rissanen, and decided to revisit her interest in art. She attended the JEDU Vocational Education Centre, Piippola from 2015 - 2017 earning a Bachelor of Arts and Crafts degree. And she is currently undergoing specialized vocational education specializing in industrial arts and design in Jyväskylä. As well as crafting her wool and felt-making, Elena teaches the art in person and online both in Finnish and English. She lives in Palonurmi, Finland with her family and three dogs. Elena;s website: https://woolrealm.com/  Instagram: @ellunhuopa  Elena’s playlist: INOSSI (Somewhere)Pink Floyd (Dark Side of the Moon)50 Cent (Candy Shop)Simon & Garfunkel (the Sound of Silence)Guano Apes (Big in Japan)Elena’s favorite female artists in visual arts: Feltmaker Marjolein DallingaFingerpainter Iris ScottCeramist Heather KnightCeramicist Iris Apfel Host: Chris Stafford Produced by Hollowell Studios Follow @theaartpodcast on Instagram AART on Facebook Email: [email protected] Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/aart--5814675/support.