Liz Mitchell

Liz Mitchell is a multi-media artist based in Hunterdon County, New Jersey. Her diverse body of work spans over three decades and reflects her deep engagement with themes of religion, mythology, folklore, and fairy tales. She came to art through listening. As a child, she was read haiku—small vessels of language that carried seasons, breath, and silence. Those early encounters with Japanese design and culture taught her that meaning does not need to announce itself; it can arrive softly, in the space between words. This sensibility continues to guide her practice, shaping how she sees, how she waits, and how she makes.

Graduating from West Virginia University with a bachelor’s degree in social work, Mitchell began her career in child protective services. To offset this difficult work, she pursued ceramics at Raritan Valley Community College, sparking a lifelong passion for art.

1990, she founded Glazed Expressions, where she sold her work at art fairs and wholesale markets, while also teaching workshops at art centers and colleges throughout the mid-Atlantic region. As a testament to her commitment to the arts and education, Mitchell served as vice-chair of the Foundation Board at Raritan Valley Community College for ten years, during which she was awarded an honorary Arts Degree.                                                                                     

Mitchell’s artistic journey has evolved as she was introduced to artist books. A significant milestone occurred in 2003 when she was invited to participate in an artist laboratory at Lafayette College in Easton, Pennsylvania. Here, she produced the visual book "More Than Stone and Mortar," documenting her great-grandfather’s role in building the Cathedral of the Sacred Heart in Newark, NJ. This work marked the beginning of a series of artist residencies at Lafayette, resulting in numerous artist books that reside in the collections of the Experimental Printmaking Institute and Skillman Library, with select pieces traveling globally through the Institute's outreach and the work of Curlee Raven Holton.

In her curation of the 2006 book arts exhibition "Miraviglia” at Lafayette College, Easton PA, she emphasized the limitless potential of book structures to evoke wonder and discovery through the 43 artists in the exhibition. This spirit permeates her artistic practice, which integrates book arts, printmaking, and installations to narrate complex stories. Her artwork is characterized by a multi-layered approach, both in content and construction, employing a variety of materials and techniques.

At the same time, Mitchell began exploring site-specific installations. She has showcased her Kimono work at the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta Airport, the Moulin Du Got paper mill in St. Leonard de Noblat, France 2000 and at L’artsolite in St-Jean-en-Royan, France 2026..

I In 2022 she was awarded a solo show at the Hunterdon Art Museum for her installation “Lead Us Not into Temptation” (see video below) which addresses child sexual abuse within organized religion.

The solo show invitation gave Mitchell the opportunity to create a new large scale installation.“The Paper Boat Project” considesr the mass migration of individuals leaving their countries in small boats crossing the mediterranean sea. This was a time when mass migration took place and individuals were boarding small craft to cross the sea. They were left without options. Fifty handmade paper boats were made as a reminder of the leap of faith that is taken when boarding a small, fragile craft; leaving the known and entering the unknown.

in 2025 she was invited back to the Hunterdon Art Museum for a group exhibition addressing the 250th anniversary of the United States. Through drawings and cast paper sculpture she presented “The Earth Remembered Me” in 2026 which considers the pressure of insect infestation and climate change on her community’s living and dying trees.