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Collage of five diverse artworks from the Hammer Museum Collections side by side. From left to right: 1) Contemporary painting of two embracing figures with surreal elements. 2) Post-impressionist style painting of trees with vibrant blues and greens. 3) Black and white illustration of a face with intricate patterns. 4) Japanese woodblock print style image of a figure in a checkered robe. 5) Photograph of a couple dancing, the woman in a black dress and the man in white

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Image of multimedia installation with elements of shadow puppetry

Hammer Projects: Lap-See Lam

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Lap-See Lam is a Stockholm-based artist whose animation, films, virtual reality, and sculptural works consider how mythology, popular culture, and fiction can both define and alter perceptions of the self and cultural belonging. This exhibition features Lam’s immersive video installation Tales of the Altersea (2023), a work inspired by the ruins of a dragon-shaped ship that Lam could see from her studio window in art school. In 1990 the ship sailed from Shanghai to Gothenburg, Sweden, with the intention of serving Chinese food to European customers across ports in the North and Baltic Seas. The gastronomic venture didn't go as its owner had hoped, and the seafaring restaurant would eventually be abandoned. The ruins of this historic vessel serve as a jumping-off point for Lam’s dreamlike story of loss, memory, and resilience.

Hammer Projects: Lap-See Lam is organized by Pablo José Ramírez, curator, with Jessi DiTillio, curatorial assistant.

Hammer Projects are single-gallery exhibitions highlighting the work of contemporary artists from around the globe, often presenting new work at a pivotal moment of an artist’s development. Ongoing since 1999, Hammer Projects is a signature series within the Hammer’s exhibition program.

Hammer Projects is presented in memory of Tom Slaughter and with support from the Horace W. Goldsmith Foundation. Lead funding is provided by the Hammer Collective. Generous support is provided by Susan Bay Nimoy and Leonard Nimoy. Additional support from the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors through the Department of Arts and Culture, and Good Works Foundation and Laura Donnelley.

Hammer Projects: Lap-See Lam is made possible, in part, by the Pasadena Art Alliance.

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