SPENCER HANSEN

Working out of a studio in Bali that he built out of wood recycled from Javanese boats, Spencer Hansen creates biomorphic sculptures that look like creatures from another planet. "I mostly don't feel a sense of ownership over what is coming through [me], only an appreciation for when creativity does flow," he says.

Hansen's sculptural creations are carved from wood, cast in patinated bronze, or covered in thick swathes of fur or hair. The creatures have serene faces that resemble ancient Egyptian amulets, Balinese wood carvings, and the masks of characters from classic science-fiction films, such as Star Wars and The Land Before Time. "Our mediums and processes are very time-intensive," Hansen says. "We don't push our team to make a quota—we don't track output like that. We are making handmade pieces, and we value the time this takes." When finished, he says, each creature possesses an "undeniable sense of aliveness."

Hansen, who grew up in rural Idaho and graduated from the San Francisco Art Institute in 2006, has been working in Bali for over a decade.