Each summer since 1990, the artist has built a new creature to roam the windy shores of the North Sea, only to declare it “dead” by autumn.
These kinetic sculptures, which scuttle across sand on wind power alone, now form a striking fossil record of creativity and evolution.
Housed in a former cable factory, the Strandbeesten Mortuary traces their development from simple forms to intricate, lifelike machines. Jansen hopes one day to build a beast that lives forever — but for now, he continues to experiment on the beach.