Familiar Things, Strange Forms: Surreal Sculptures by Maskull Lasserre

Canadian artist Maskull Lasserre transforms familiar objects into surreal sculptures where the everyday collides with the natural world and the macabre. Pianos are carved apart and seemingly reconnected by twisting octopus tentacles, a wooden hammerhead shark appears to emerge from the head of a sledgehammer, and a wooden branch impossibly crushes an anvil.

Much of Maskull’s work relies on carefully altering existing materials while preserving enough of their original form to keep them recognizable. In one sculpture, two sections of a tree trunk remain connected by an intricately carved length of rope, while another splits a piano almost perfectly in half, exposing its internal mechanics and leaving only a tiny wishbone joining the two sides. These unexpected interventions create moments of visual tension, humor and uncertainty, making solid materials seem strangely fragile or alive.

For more of Maskull Lasserre’s work, visit his website and follow his latest updates on Instagram.

More art on the grid Maskull Lasserre’s website