An avid enthusiast of mythology and cartography, Toronto-based artist Bailey Henderson sculpts the fearsome sea creatures depicted on medieval and Renaissance-era maps. She brings her bronze sculptures to life with acrylic paint and powdered pigment, creating dimensional versions of the mythical beasts sailors once feared. There’s Ziphius, a bird-faced orca rumored to slice boats in half with its dorsal fin; the cockatrice, a rooster-dragon known to kill by breathing on its victims; and the pinniped, a dog-like seal with protruding tusks. Henderson’s work is often whimsical and humorous, and brings with it a bit of history that makes it all the more fascinating.
Creating minimalistic sculptures out of wooden sticks and hot glue, Polish artist