Olyvia Hong, Descendants, 2024  

Olyvia Hong
Descendants, 2024
oil on wet-strength, paraffin wax, resin plaster, epoxy resin
200x500mm

Descendants relies on a set of divinatory processes and material transformations. Hong explores memories and sensory associations with the figure of the kumiho, an adversarial spirit in Korean and east Asian folklore who takes the form of a shapeshifting nine-tailed fox. The painting depicts two mirrored foxes swimming in a pool of water, a serendipitous composition created using an AI image generator. The work is framed by a dripping wax window painted in chrome, as if offering a portal into another realm. In Descendants, the fluidity of wax shares an affinity with the metamorphic form of the fox spirit.

This work was included in the group exhibition Distance is a blade, curated by Amy Weng, at The Physics Room in 2024.

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Olyvia Hong was born and raised in Tāmaki Makaurau. Currently based in Ōtautahi, Hong manipulates found and hand-crafted materials to explore ways in which she can subvert narratives that revolve around loss, grief, self, and familial identities. She was one of the coordinators behind Samoa House Library from 2018-22. Recent group exhibitions include The River Remains; ake tonu atu, 2018, Artspace Aotearoa; I Understand If You’re Busy, 2018, RM; Dog Pit, 2018, Satchi&Satchi&Satchi; and Rabbit on the Moon, 2017, Hapori Vol. 6, all Tāmaki Makaurau.