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London-based artist Hannah Lim is showing sculptural works inspired by Chinese snuff bottles in her solo exhibition “Reimaginings” at the Museum of East Asian Art in Bath through November 14, 2026. The enlarged pieces connect her research into Chinoiserie and Chinese mythology with her British-Singaporean heritage; Lim says she aims to reinterpret cultural styles more conscientiously.
London-based artist Hannah Lim is presenting sculptural interpretations of Chinese snuff bottles in “Reimaginings,” her solo exhibition at the Museum of East Asian Art in Bath, which runs through November 14, 2026. The works bring her research into historical design and Chinese mythology together with her British-Singaporean heritage, as she reconsiders motifs that European makers once adapted for Western audiences.
Traditional snuff bottles were small, portable containers associated with a powdered, scented tobacco that users inhaled. Lim’s versions are several inches tall and often require both hands to hold. She builds them from polymer clay and Jesmonite, then finishes the surfaces with chalk, acrylic paint and gloss. Some feature painted or relief portraits of animals and imagined creatures.
Lim told Colossal that the works began by highlighting personal aspects of her heritage and have since reflected different stages of her research. Each bottle conceals a hanging charm inside its lid, referring to the small spoon attached to the lids of traditional bottles. The source report identifies works including “Phoenix Spirit House Snuff Bottle,” “Sleeping Tiger Snuff Bottle” and “Midnight Crane Snuff Bottle 1.”
Her research also draws on The Classic of Mountains and Seas, an ancient Chinese text describing more than 550 mountains and 300 waterways, much of it fantastical. Lim said she uses the text’s descriptions of creatures as inspiration for recent sculptures and paintings. The source report says she is experimenting with metal and laser-cut elements, while also making bespoke frames that extend the imagery of her paintings.
Reworking the Snuff Bottle Form
Lim’s shift from a small container to a sculpture held in two hands changes how viewers encounter the form. The scale makes decorative details and mythological imagery more prominent, while the hidden charm preserves a reference to the original object’s design. The work links historical craft and contemporary sculpture through a specific object with a complicated cultural history.
That history matters to Lim’s stated approach. Chinoiserie was a European design fashion in the 17th and 18th centuries that imitated Chinese and other Asian motifs for Western markets. Lim says she wants to reclaim and reimagine that practice more conscientiously. Her exhibition places that aim alongside her own heritage and ongoing research, rather than presenting the borrowed motifs as detached decoration.
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From Chinoiserie to Chinese Myth
Snuff bottle use became a consumer trend in China in the 17th century. The tobacco itself originated in the Americas; the powdered, scented product was inhaled with help from a small spoon. As with snuff in Europe, its popularity spread especially among affluent consumers. Lim became interested in the bottles after seeing examples in museum collections around the United Kingdom and studying their varied, ornate designs.
Her wider interest in 17th- and 18th-century Chinoiserie informs the project, but the bottles also give her a focus for examining particular cultural styles and processes. The Colossal report describes her practice as drawing on historical ceramics, classical Chinese literature and her British-Singaporean background. The exhibition is one part of a broader programme: the report also says some of her works will be shown with Cynthia Corbett Gallery in Paris later in October, and that a new public artwork is planned for Paddington, London, later in 2026.
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Details Beyond the Exhibition
The source report does not provide the exhibition’s full checklist, visitor numbers or details about how the museum is presenting the historical objects alongside Lim’s sculptures. It also does not give dates or venues for the Paris display, or a schedule and design description for the planned Paddington public artwork. Lim’s material experiments are described as ongoing, so the final forms of future works are not specified.
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Bath Show and Later Projects
“Reimaginings” remains on view at the Museum of East Asian Art in Bath through November 14, 2026. The source report says works will also be shown with Cynthia Corbett Gallery in Paris later in October and that Lim plans to unveil a new public artwork in Paddington later this year. It gives no further dates for those projects.
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Key Questions
Where can visitors see Hannah Lim’s “Reimaginings” exhibition?
The solo exhibition is at the Museum of East Asian Art in Bath and runs through November 14, 2026.How are Lim’s sculptures different from traditional snuff bottles?
Traditional snuff bottles were small and portable. Lim’s sculptural versions are several inches tall and often need to be held with both hands.What materials does Hannah Lim use?
The reported works combine polymer clay and Jesmonite, with finishes that include chalk, acrylic paint and gloss.What inspires Lim’s creature imagery?
Lim has drawn on The Classic of Mountains and Seas, an ancient Chinese text containing fantastical accounts of mountains, waterways and creatures.What projects are planned after the Bath exhibition?
The source report says some works are due to appear with Cynthia Corbett Gallery in Paris later in October, and that a public artwork is planned for Paddington, London, later in 2026. It does not give further dates.Source: rss
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