Wilder Gallery London exhibits works by Singaporean-British artist, Hannah Lim

Wilder Gallery's show Bestiaries, is a solo exhibition featuring the creations of London-based artist Hannah Lim. This curated display of Lim's diverse artworks showcases intricate sculptural artworks and wall installation through which she has skillfully and whimsically intertwined her Singapore and British lineage through a contemporary reimagining of Chinoiserie, an 18th-century design movement harmonizing the aesthetics of China with the preferences of Europe.

Wilder Gallery is an independent art space that serves as a platform for emerging contemporary artists, aiming to promote and bolster the careers of the most promising talents in the art world. The gallery has a strong commitment to featuring the artistic contributions of female artists and places a strong emphasis on inclusivity and accessibility.

Wilder Gallery is now presenting Hannah Lim’s work, a young artist born in 1998. Her work stands between sculpture, installations, and drawing. She has an MFA from The University of Oxford’s Ruskin School of Art and recently showcased her works in solo exhibitions with Edinburgh Printmakers and Huxley-Parlour Gallery whilst also exhibiting in group shows with The Royal Scottish Academy and Bloomberg New Contemporaries.

As part of this presentation Lim presents 10 sculptures inspired by snuff bottles and 6 paintings. This collection is inspired by Chinese mythology. Quoting the artist “‘The works in the show are ornamental, creaturely, animistic, and intricate - inspired by my research into Chinese and Medieval Bestiaries as well as imagery and objects that have become symbols of my heritage.” This series of artworks has received remarkable feedback, and she was recently commissioned by Tate Collective to create a sculpture in the style of her ‘Snuff Bottle Series’ for Women’s History Month.

Regarding her ‘Snuff Bottle’ series Lim explains: “Snuff bottles became for me a visual emblem of my Chinese and British heritage. Snuff bottles were in the past treated as quite personal objects, detailed yet functional, they could fit inside the palm of your hand. In 2020 I began a project where I started developing a series of sculptures inspired by the intricate designs, I had seen on so many snuff bottles.”

Lim's sculptures exude a lively and playful quality, evoking the vibrant hues found in Singapore's architecture. In her reinterpretation of chinoiserie furniture's distinctive claw-like feet, she adorns her sculptures with hands and feet, infusing them with a charming anthropomorphic essence.

Apart from exploring the Chinese bestiaries found in texts such as 'The Classics of Mountains and Seas' and Pu Songling’s 'Tales of a Chinese Studio’ Lim has mixed her work with elements from Medieval bestiaries as well, finding and exploring parallels between the two traditions, thus merging the tales and the beasts for her sculptural narrative.

At the core of Lim's artistic endeavours lies a profound examination of her own identity. Leveraging her blended heritage, which intertwines elements of Singaporean and British cultures, she embarks on a journey through the historical crossroads of these societies, particularly as expressed in furnishings, artefacts, and architectural styles. Lim's fascination with Chinoiserie culminates in sculptures that skillfully reclaim this cultural tapestry, blending awareness and imaginative flair.

Lim cited Anne Anlin Cheng's theory of 'Ornamentalism' as a notable influence on her art. This feminist perspective explores the depiction of Southeast Asian femininity as innately ornamental, and it strongly resonates with Lim's personal explorations of identity. To Lim, the deliberate 'ornamentation' or decorative richness in her work has evolved into a means of challenging rigid perceptions of identity and race, which can often be sources of ambiguity and conflict for individuals with mixed cultural heritages.