Past Lives: Seonna Hong

Past Lives

on view through June 22, 2025

Featuring original work by Seonna Hong, Past Lives uncovers and explores identity-defining memories through dreamlike landscapes, wandering figures, and subtle symbolism. Interweaving her Korean and American heritage, Hong traces how these memories can shape visual narratives to reveal belonging and meaning. 

About the artist 

Seonna Hong

Image

Seonna Hong (b. 1973) was born and raised in Southern California. She graduated with a B.A. in Art from Cal State University Long Beach and continued to hone her craft teaching art to children for several years. Her paintings are quietly narrative and often autobiographical, no doubt influenced by her time teaching as well as her work in TV and Feature Animation. In 2004, she received an Emmy Award for Individual Achievement in Production Design for her work on My Life as a Teenage Robot. 

In 2006, she was the recipient of the Joan Mitchell Foundation Grant. Her illustrated book, Animus, is in its third printing, and according to Ken Johnson (The New York Times), "...the paintings are beautifully made and the imagery is mysteriously touching." Hong continues to show her work in shows and galleries around the world and is represented by Hashimoto Contemporary. 

Programming

February 12, 1:30 to 3:00 p.m. / dialogue with Seonna Hong 

February 13, 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. / opening celebration 

Header image: detail of Seonna Hong (b. 1973) Atacama 1, acrylic and oil pastel on raw canvas, 60 x 75 inches, Courtesy of the artist and Hashimoto Contemporary.