We present a new and original modelling framework for sea-ice mechanics based on elasto-brittle (EB) behavior. Sea-ice deformation plays a key role in air–ice–ocean interactions as well as the global dynamics of the ice cover, but it is crudely represented in current sea-ice models which are based mainly in the viscous-plastic (VP) rheology. The aim of the framework we present is to capture the statistical and scaling properties of sea-ice deformation. Sea ice is considered as a continuous elastic plate encountering progressive damage, represented as a reduction of the elastic modulus at the local (element) scale and reflecting the increase of crack and lead density. The damage threshold is determined using the Coulomb criterion. As the result of long-range interactions, the stress relaxation following a damage event can induce an avalanche of damage. Damage propagates in narrow linear features, resulting in a very heterogeneous strain field. A second criterion is implemented to account for the formation of pressure ridges taking place under high confining stress states. Simulations over short timescales (~48 hours) are performed with a finite element application of the model over the Arctic Ocean. Sea ice is considered as quasi-static (no advection) forced by wind stress fields derived from ECMWF analysis. The simulated ice deformation fields compare well with strain-rate estimates derived from RGPS observations: deformation strongly localizes into quasi-linear features, and the statistical and scaling properties of the fields are in striking agreement with observations. For comparison, similar simulations are performed with the VP rheology implemented in the finite element version of the Louvain-la-Neuve ice model (LIM). We show that the EB model considerably improves the representation of sea-ice deformation. These results motivate the implementation of the EB model in a global dynamic–thermodynamic sea-ice model.