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Payal Uttam

As art fever sweeps Hong Kong this weekend with Art Basel, we celebrate three rising female painters from around the world who are redefining figurative art with their signature works.
Brooklyn-based Korean artist Eunnam Hong creates meticulous paintings of a mysterious, slender woman with a mop of voluminous curls who appears to be frozen in time. At times, this lanky figure lies asleep or hunched over a table alone. In other cases, multiple replicas of the woman crowd the canvas.

Hong is the model in each of these works – she dons various costumes, then shoots photographs and paints them. She dresses fashionably in various outfits, from a feminine dress in pastel pink, to an edgy leather jacket with jeans and leather gloves.

There is an unsettling quality to her images, which feel awkward and unnaturally staged. She hardly shows her face in the paintings, and when we do catch a glimpse, her skin appears pale and her eyes have a vacant look. Her cinematic compositions are tightly cropped, placing the women within doorways, narrow hallways and small domestic spaces, creating a feeling of claustrophobia.

Born in Gangwon-do in northeast South Korea, Hong developed a love of film from a young age. Initially, her parents discouraged her from pursuing a career as an artist, so she studied graphic design and became an art director. After years of working at fashion magazines in Korea, she took a sabbatical, moved to New York and started painting.

In her early work, she was interested in exploring ideals of beauty and was reluctant to paint herself, but Hong soon harnessed her training as an art director, and began transforming herself into different personas.

“These characters come from my interior world. I’ve been thinking a lot about the domestic environment and my life over the past decade,” she told Artnet News. “There are psychological uniforms that I’ve worn over the years – as an artist, a mother, a wife – in relation to the external world.”

Over time, Hong has continued to paint herself in various guises. Today her influences span the worlds of film, literature and art history. Among them, she has cited American painter Elizabeth Peyton, Korean director Hong Sang-soo, American filmmaker John Cassavetes and Hong Kong director Wong Kar-wai.







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This woman’s mukbang (2024) by Brooklyn-based Korean artist Eunnam Hong shows a mysterious woman with flamboyantly curled hair that appears in much of her work – a woman that is in fact the artist herself, in costume. Photo: Kunning Huang
                  

Control (2024). Photo: Kunning Huang

Performers (2024). Photo: Kunning Huang

Submission (2024). Photo: Kunning Huang

Spelling (2024). Photo: Kunning Huang

The Kitchen (2024). Photo: Kunning Huang

POV (2024). Photo: Kunning Huang

Husbands (2024). Photo: Kunning Huang

Middle (2024). Photo: Kunning Huang

Views (2024). Photo: Kunning Huang 

Authors (2023). Photo: Kunning Huang

Memories (2024). Photo: Kunning Huang

How Lousy is bringing satire, surrealism and cheeky graffiti to Hong Kong’s streets

Hong Kong street artist Lousy’s work can be found across the city. Photo: @lousylousy/Instagram

Lousy street art often melds into its surroundings on Hong Kong’s streets. Photo: Handout

A passer-by poses in front of one of Lousy’s artworks, which can be seen across Hong Kong’s streets. Photo: Handout

Lousy street artwork on the Remex Centre in Hong Kong. Photo: Handout

Lousy collaborated with photographer David Leung for the “Double Umami” show at JPS Gallery in Hong Kong. Photo: Handout

A section of Lousy’s “Double Umami” show at JPS Gallery in Hong Kong. Photo: Handout

Dim sum is the inspiration for this piece by Hong Kong street artist Lousy. Photo: @lousylousy/Instagram

Lousy has collaborated with brands ranging from local eyewear label A. Society to the Eaton Hong Kong hotel. Photo: Handout

Artworks at Lousy’s “Double Umami” show at JPS Gallery in Hong Kong. Photo: Handout

Hong Kong street artist Lousy uses the human body as a canvas for his art, too. Photo: @lousylousy/Instagram

A painting by Lousy, using the human body as his canvas. Photo: Handout

Lousy collaborated on lai see packets with Eaton HK. Photo: Handout

Hong Kong street artist Lousy’s design seen on a ski jacket. Photo: Handout

In their words: photographer Wing Shya recalls 20 years of style highs in Hong Kong

Photographer, artist and director Wing Shya is a regular contributor to top fashion and art magazines. Photo: Handout

“The Love of Couture: Artisanship in Fashion Beyond Time” exhibition (2022) was a collaboration between K11, Hong Kong designer William Chang and London’s V&A. Photo: K11 Musea 

In 2024, Vivienne Tam celebrated her 30th anniversary at Paris Fashion Week with a show named Amour 愛. Photo: Gorunway.com 

Yat Pit fashion designer and co-founder, Jason Mui. Photo: Yik Yeung-man

Shya’s fashion shoot for i-D magazine. Photo: Wing Shya

Byredo’s Young Rose campaign (2021). Photo: Leslie Zhang

Hong Kong Art Week beyond Art Basel, from Art Central to street art and more

Greatness, a work by visual and mural artist LeHo, at HKWalls. Photo: Handout

The Central Yards Edible Art Fair, Hong Kong’s first event of its kind, debuts at the Central Harbourfront Event Space. Photo: Handout

A mural on a truck by Spanish artist Spok Brillor, featured at the HKWalls Street Art Festival. Photo: Handout

Irish guerrilla artist Asbestos is part of the HKWalls line-up for 2026. Photo: Handout

Choc Duck by Angela Yuen. Photo: Handout

Froggy Biscuits is an edible art piece by Frog King. Photo: Handout

Zoie Yung is the curator of Art Central 2026. Photo: Handout

The M+ museum is presenting more than 200 works by Lee Bul. Photo: Jelly Tse

Why modern art museum Dib Bangkok is a must-visit destination in Thailand

The courtyard of Thailand’s world-class museum of contemporary art, DIB Bangkok, which is housed in a converted warehouse redesigned by Why Architecture and Architects 49 (A49). Photo: Handout

The design concept was inspired by the Buddhist idea of enlightenment. Photo: Handout

 Paloma Varga Weisz’s Bumpman on a Tree Trunk is part of Dib Bangkok’s inaugural exhibition, “(I)nvisible Presence”, featuring works by 40 leading artists. Photo: Handout

Louise Bourgeois’ Untitled. Photo: Handout

Montien Boonma’s Water. Photo: Handout

Style according to … Pearl Lam, the Hong Kong-born founder of Pearl Lam Projects

Pear Lam, founder of Pearl Lam Galleries. Photo: Handout

The UV Defense Fluid from La Mer. Photo: Handout

A House of Alvin creation. Photo: Handout

Pearl Lam is a fan of fresh meat mooncakes. Photo: Handout

New Peach Blossom Spring Wonderland by Qiu Anxiong. Photo: Handout

Pearl Lam draws inspiration from Chinese designers, including Ms Min. Photo: Handout

Habitas Alula is a sustainable desert resort in Saudi Arabia. Photo: Handout

Huangshan (Yellow Mountain) in China’s Anhui province. Photo: Unsplash

School of Beauty, School of Culture by Kerry James Marshall. Photo: Handout

Lively Xiangyang Park in Shanghai. Photo: Shutterstock

Pearl Lam collects bracelets and bangles on her travels. Photo: Handout

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The New York-based Korean artist cites filmmakers Wong Kar-wai, John Cassavetes and Hong Sang-soo, and painter Elizabeth Peyton as inspirations


The New York-based Korean artist cites filmmakers Wong Kar-wai, John Cassavetes and Hong Sang-soo, and painter Elizabeth Peyton as inspirations.


Painter Eunnam Hong explores identity through haunting self-portraits

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}The New York-based Korean artist cites filmmakers Wong Kar-wai, John Cassavetes and Hong Sang-soo, and painter Elizabeth Peyton as inspirations

The New York-based Korean artist cites filmmakers Wong Kar-wai, John Cassavetes and Hong Sang-soo, and painter Elizabeth Peyton as inspirations