Marlies Ritter, Brazilian Ceramicist Known for Uncanny Doll Heads, Dies at 85
Marlies Ritter, a ceramic artist from Brazil, has passed away. Hailing from Porto Alegre, she was a student of Vasco Prado and Xico Stockinger, contributing to Stockinger's Atelier Vila Nova until 1991. Ritter's artistry reimagined ordinary items into surreal creations, frequently incorporating doll heads on pedestals or mannequins. She also crafted intricate ceramics inspired by seed pods and kitchen utensils. In 2025, her inaugural retrospective was organized by Fundação Vera Chaves Barcellos, featuring her work in fabric, woodcut, and photography, including the installation Untitled (2023–25), which displayed 101 ceramic potatoes. Curator Fernanda Albuquerque remarked that Ritter’s creations blend ceramics, textiles, and language, exploring themes of memory and presence through a contemplative repetition process.
Key facts
- Marlies Ritter was a Brazilian artist best known for her ceramics.
- She was born in Porto Alegre, southern Brazil.
- Ritter studied modelling with Vasco Prado and Xico Stockinger.
- She worked at Stockinger's Atelier Vila Nova until 1991.
- Her work often used repetition to make everyday objects uncanny.
- She repeatedly returned to doll heads, placing them on plinths or oversized dressmaker's dummy bodies.
- In 2025, Fundação Vera Chaves Barcellos staged her first retrospective.
- For that show she made Untitled (2023–25), an installation of 101 ceramic potatoes.
Entities
Artists
- Marlies Ritter
- Vasco Prado
- Xico Stockinger
- Fernanda Albuquerque
Institutions
- Fundação Vera Chaves Barcellos
- Atelier Vila Nova
Locations
- Porto Alegre
- Brazil