Malene Hartmann Rasmussen is a Danish artist working within the field ofnarrative figurative sculpture and installation. A recurring theme in her work isthe forest and the mythological creatures that lurk in the dark woods. Sheweaves together notions of memories, daydreams and childhood nostalgiainto a fairy-tale of her own making. Hartmann Rasmussen’s interest in theforest stems from its recurrence in European literature and myth, ancientcults, pagan rituals, and as a metaphor for the hidden realms of theunconscious mind. Comprising a number of elaborate fragments, shecreates tableaux of visual excess through which she seeks to evoke anemotional response in the viewer and actuate their imagination.Her work draws on the idea of animism; that animals and plants have a souland that rivers, mountains and rocks, if not actually alive, are in some waysentient. She is interested in the human subconscious and strives to create ahyper-real world that addresses this gap between perception and reality. Herornate ceramics may initially appear excessively sweet, but upon closerinspection reveal themselves as impossible and absurd objects, imbued withthe artist’s own dark narrative. As a form of catharsis, the artist tries toexorcise misery, anger, and grief – as if they were demons – emotions whichrelate to the loss of her father and mother and the memories of a time nowpassed.