For Art-O-Rama 2024 Xxijra Hii and Studio/Chapple present works in dialogue by Hannah Morgan and Hoa Dung Clerget. 

Our idea explores themes of communicating identity through culturally-belonging material processes and the internal/external experiences of family, myth and generational story-telling. 

The presentation aims to push the viewer around the space, delving into small intimate wall based sculptural and video based works, immersing in an environmental and subtle sound whilst unconsciously navigating around a floor-based obstacle in the form of a sprawling sculpture. This directional approach tells a story of two female identifying artists, presenting a world of personal histories and communicating their identity through a series of material applications, relevant to generational labour, homelife, love and loss. Both artists attempt to preserve the stories and artefacts of their familial settings by means of shrine; inviting us to witness and engage in the mental processing of collective memory and representation of identity. 

HD Clerget creates installations and objects that delve into the work of immigrant women, via the Nail Art and micro-societies of nail salons. As a member of the Vietnamese diaspora, her works reflect a close relationship with the nail salons ecosystem, seeking to give tangible form to the labour and gestures of women from her community. She explores familiar objects that are found in the interiors of Vietnamese families and the places dear to the community. In her mother's house, each object tells a story: a black lacquered chest of drawers inlaid with mother-of-pearl, a porcelain figurine of a blue dog, a transparent jade pendant representing Buddha, or even a miniature diorama depicting a delicate pagoda in its natural setting. Each element transports one to a distant world: a luminous painting depicting a paradisiacal waterfall, small liqueur cups revealing suggestive images of nude women in their bottom. The series of work presented reworks these motifs using the very same material and process used in nail salons when developing acrylic based extensions and nail art.  

Hannah Morgan is a sculptor known for carving, metal works and sound, that often delve into the physicality of identity and the human form in connection to our surroundings. The presentation explores how Morgan’s generative practice delves into the complexities of personal and collective identities. In an era marked by rapidly evolving landscapes and shifting societal norms, she aims to provoke contemplation on how identity is constructed, deconstructed, and redefined through perceptions of racial, social and personal motif.  ‘Animula’ (little soul) is an ongoing series drawing on underland entanglements based on research in caves and early mine cartography related to Morgan’s genetic heritage, through paternal labour and personal experiences of simultaneous loss and birth. 

Vocal recordings will envelop / reflect off the work, while a portal into descent is experienced from a metal ‘tunnel’,forming openings to other realms within the space. Carved and potted creatures in various states of emergence will be placed around these pathways, exhibiting amorphous, shape-shifting elemental forms; acting as a tether to life itself.

We offer a show that challenges the conventional understanding of self, showcasing the creative synthesis of generative sculpture and modified nail-sculpting techniques; providing a fresh perspective on the multifaceted nature of identity. Through this exhibition, we hope to inspire meaningful dialogues about self-perception, transformation, and the intersection of art and family in contemporary society.