Blackness gleams from the eyes of Keiko Hatano’s dolls, made in the style of the wooden maquette figure — right down to the movable joints. Hatano’s characters are reminiscent of humans in their anatomy and facial expressions but embody a whimsical divergence. Hatano, curator for rotating art exhibits at Fishcake, made the dolls out of paper clay.

Hatano and eight other local artists are showing their work in “Others,” an exhibit of otherworldly characters showing through July 31.

Kate Partika, a recent University of Hawaii graduate with a ceramics degree, was excited to be featured in her first off-campus art show. Partika’s love for animals was exemplified in two of her ceramic pieces. A large salt-fired fox was playful and textured, while “Inari” combined both human and fox elements in a nod to Japa­nese culture.

Her third piece in the show, “American Girl, A Parody,” featured an innocent, chubby girl dressed in patriotic pasties and lingerie, licking a lollipop. Partika said the sculpture reflected her fears of American children growing up too fast.

“I’m hoping to evoke a smile, maybe cheer someone up a bit. In some cases to get a message across, promote a good cause,” she said.

May Izumi’s tastes veer toward the Tim Burton-esque, with her “twisted” mixed-media creatures. A gray ceramic rabbit with cobbled-together body parts showcases Izumi’s interest in “mixing things up.”

“I like to make weird animals; sometimes they have hands instead of tails,” Izumi said. “They’re kind of fairy tale-ish, sort of twisted fairy tales. I like stories, so a lot of times I’ll take elements from a fairy tale and I’ll twist them up and mix them,” Izumi said.

Hatano said artists generally come to her with their pieces, but she also searches islandwide for new talent. This exhibit includes the work of Ryan Higa, Deanna Itano, Kay Mura, Vicky Chock, Maile Yawata and Esther Shi­mazu.

“‘Others’ encompasses all these other worlds, other people, other things. When you look at the dolls, they are virtually just clay. (It’s the artists) that give the life,” Hatano said.