Frosted Fairytales

Sweet and happy stories set in lollypop land are boring. Who wants those? Oh hang on, except for the lollypop land bit. That part is good.

From donuts that fly to lolly-men that lob raspberries, the creatures of Nicoletta Ceccoli’s (a fairytale name in itself if ever I heard one) inhabit strange and sinister landscapes that are coated in sweet candy colours and dipped in frosting; in which sugar seems to be the dark lord, and where very bad things happen to cakes.

sugar seems to be the dark lord, and … very bad things happen to cakes

Ceccoli is an Italian artist, born and bred in San Marino. She studied animation in the Institute of Art in Urbino, Italy but afterwards moved on to illustrating books, the most recent of which is Cinderella. Her work has been exhibited internationally and won her many awards. Ceccoli’s fantastical world is populated by hybrid creatures that – were it not for her subdued but sweet colour palette – could easily dwell in a dark netherworld.

Look at these pictures late at night and maybe, if you’re lucky, you might step into one in your dreams.

These are a few of my favourites. See more of her mouth-watering work on her website.