Anna Rasmussen

My current work is an ideological blend focused predominantly on ideas of comfort predominantly derived from emotional surrogacy. In essence, this concept is accessible within nearly every culture, as historically folktales, parables, and myths have been used as ways to explain things that were inexplicable without modern access to science. I’ve pulled visuals and stories from these cultures, blending all of them together into amorphous form until they are entirely my own design. These comfort creatures draw from Russian Domovoi, Danish Gnomes, Alaskan Kooshdakhaa, Icelandic Huldufólk, Philippine Devatas, Japanese Yōkai, and many more. All have friendly associations with humans, being kind, helpful, and protective when appeased, reinforcing the concept of comfort. As they and others provided a sort of reassurance and external guardian for the cultures around the world, so do my version, a new addition to this long historical tradition.

These creatures are intentionally ambiguous, enabling emotional projection. They’re familiar to the human body in motion and limb, with entanglement intended to direct visual flow and hold attention. The mess of limbs also permits an application of self, of intention, and of perception, while the patterning draws the attention and emphasizes ambiguity. Viewers are invited to put their own emotions onto these creatures, to interpret them as they may, and to find comfort in these “others”.