Henrik Glahn’s Desert Oud series finds presence in hand-shaped concrete.
In Henrik Glahn’s world, form is a conversation rather than a concept. His sculptures resist immediate interpretation. They’re not figurative but suggest the human. They don’t move, but they carry rhythm. His four Desert Oud pieces, created for MONUMENTS at Audo House, each stand just over 40 cm tall. Quietly monumental, they offer weight without heaviness.
“I started with sensing the space at Audo,” Henrik says. “It’s how I always begin — trying to feel what belongs.” The works — Desert Oud 1–4 — are hand-shaped in concrete, a material Glahn returns to often. “Concrete has its own will,” he explains. “You shape it but it pushes back. It allows both control and chance.” The textured surfaces feel subdued, like objects long exposed to time and air.
Though known for larger commissions, these smaller works offer a more intimate window into his language. “They’re cut from the same logic,” he says. “Volume, balance, the tension between softness and weight.” Each piece twists gently upward, like wind-shaped stone or smoothed torsos, but avoids direct reference. “Abstraction leaves space for interpretation. A curve, a fold, the way two lines meet — it’s enough,” he adds. The name reflects a deeper mood: “There’s something about oud — dry, earthy, warm. These shapes reminded me of that. Almost like they were found, not made.”
Japanese influence hums through Henrik’s work – he lived there briefly as a child – as does Scandinavian restraint. His minimalism is, therefore, instinctive, not reductive. “Balance is what I’m after — in asymmetry, voids, stillness. That’s what creates calm.” He adds no colour because he wants the form to speak: “You start with nothing, then shape what feels essential.”
While often destined for homes or galleries, Henrik hopes for something quieter. “I want the pieces to keep unfolding — to become part of someone’s everyday, slowly revealing themselves over time.”
