Weird & Whimsical Ceramic Sculptures by Malene Hartmann Rasmussen

Danish artist Malene Hartmann Rasmussen creates ceramic sculptures that feel pulled from a half-remembered fairy tale. Faces sprout too many eyes, bodies merge with shells, leaves, antlers or scales, and nothing quite settles into the familiar. At first glance the surfaces feel lush and inviting, but spend a moment longer and the logic slips, revealing creatures that are playful, unsettling, and gently absurd.

To craft these captivating figures, Malene draws on European folklore, pagan ritual and animist ideas. Her sculptures often seem like fragments of a larger myth, combining childhood nostalgia with darker undercurrents linked to memory, loss and grief. Sweetness and discomfort sit side by side, held together through meticulous surface detail and a deliberate sense of excess.

A selection of the artist’s works is currently on view alongside paintings by James Mortimer in the exhibition Brutes at James Freeman Gallery in London, running until February 14. For more of Malene’s creations, head over to her website and follow her latest updates on Instagram.

More art on the grid via Colossal