The fantastical art of Wangechi Mutu: from plant people to a 31-foot snake

Visitors to "Wangechi Mutu: Intertwined" at the New Museum are greeted by "In Two Canoe" (foreground) and "For Whom the Bell Tolls," two sculptures by the Kenyan-born artist that feature fantastical hybrid creatures set against a landscape that uses gray emergency relief blankets to depict the silhouette of Mount Kenya. (Courtesy New Museum. Photo: Dario Lasagni)

The pair of sculptures look like fantastical beings that are part human, part plant. Gnarled limbs of bronze and soil seem to extend from their bodies into the floor of the Lobby Gallery of The New Museum in New York City.

The two works — "In Two Canoe" (2022) and "For Whom the Bell Tolls" (2019) — are a fitting metaphor for the artist who created them: Wangechi Mutu, known for her habit of branching out into various media and pulling inspiration from her environment.