Natasja Alers transforms the human body into a fluid and expressive sculptural language. Cast from fragments of the body and subsequently manipulated by hand, her works occupy a space between figuration and abstraction, familiarity and estrangement.
In this bust, the classical tradition of portrait sculpture is deliberately disrupted. The figure appears to emerge from a flowing mass of glaze, as if caught in a process of transformation. Rich layers of iridescent blue, black, bronze and flesh-toned glazes cascade across the surface, obscuring and revealing bodily features simultaneously. The result is a sculpture that feels both ancient and futuristic, solid and liquid.
Alers is fascinated by the vulnerability of the body and the emotions it carries. Rather than presenting an idealized figure, she embraces imperfection, sensuality and ambiguity. The melting surface suggests movement, growth and decay, while the fragmented anatomy invites viewers to project their own interpretations onto the work.
Balancing humour, beauty and discomfort, this sculpture exemplifies Alers' distinctive practice, in which the body becomes a site of experimentation. Through her tactile treatment of clay and glaze, she challenges conventional notions of identity, gender and physicality, creating works that are at once intimate, seductive and quietly unsettling.