Edel Assanti

We are delighted to announce Edel Assanti’s representation of Si On, following her second exhibition with the gallery 'Soft Armour, Heavy Bones'.

Si On’s multidisciplinary practice unfolds through an intuitive, daily process of creation, encompassing painting, sculpture, and installation. Her works are built up through a process of repetitive material layering, combining traditional techniques with an eclectic range of found objects and unconventional media.

Within these richly textured compositions, Si On’s characters exist in vibrantly hypnotic landscapes that mirror their protagonists’ transcendent states. Despite the otherworldly aesthetic of her work, Si On’s subjects are universal human emotions, often focusing on extreme psychological states and their underlying triggers: personal trauma, sociocultural tension and political unrest.

Her hallucinant world is characterised by methodically balanced forces: innocence invaded by darkness; decay held at bay by beauty; brutality countered by primitive justice; and pain overcome by humour. Through this tense equilibrium, Si On visualises the way in which, in her own words: "Life experiences shape our identities, as we carry memories, hopes, scars, and traumas that accumulate over time, revealing the complex aspects of our humanity."

📸 Photo: Ian Moon Studio.

Tonight: All welcome to the opening reception of Si On’s solo exhibition, 'Soft Armour, Heavy Bones' at Edel Assanti, 6-8 pm.

Si On’s works are developed through a deeply intuitive practice of daily creation, working in a vibrant palette across painting, sculpture and installation. Works are built up in a process of repetitive material layering, using traditional techniques alongside the incorporation of all manner of objects and mediums. This practice is emblematic of Si On’s belief in art as a space in which superficial distraction must be peeled away to allow unseen dynamics to come into focus.

'Soft Armour, Heavy Bones' unfolds across three rooms, each populated by defiant female protagonists roaming hypnotically swirling landscapes. An ecosystem of animated objects and natural forces is instilled with a morally unstable character, at times nourishing Si On’s antiheroines, elsewhere threatening to ingest them altogether, decentring her human subjects: "I believe that every form – human, animal, or even inanimate objects like stones and dust – possesses spirit and value. I honour even the smallest elements of the world, recognising our interconnectedness."

📸 Photo: Tom Carter.