Nhozagri’s Stuffie Babies


Nhozagri tells me her name means “someone who can make the sun sharp” in Chinese. She speaks in special, spiritual aphorisms. For example, about one of her sculptures, a particularly circular, fuzzy orange creature, she says, “Memories are jumping rope on someone’s face.” When I first laid eyes on Nhozagri’s creations, it was love at first sight. Hers were the first pieces of art I’ve ever wanted to kiss. The 28-year-old Beijing-based artist constructs hundreds of stuffed animals by hand, each one unique, complete with their own narrative.  “An animal is born, just like making a sculpture. Most of them have a story in their eyes,” she explains, hand-painting tiny little scenes in each pair of eyes. One green and blue fuzzy bear/squid is listed as A block of sky and grass—to hold this baby means to hold a piece of time and space. Nhozagri tells us that her babies pray to be returned to their planet, and that we can help by adopting them.  -Claire Milbrath