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Hongxi Li (b. 1996, Xiamen) is a Chinese artist living and working in London, UK. Li explores human behaviour and societal structures through sculpture and performance, focusing on corporate influence, power dynamics, and emotional discomfort. Her work integrates symbols of capitalism and uses humour—manifested in inefficiencies and repetitions—to explore these themes. Ultimately, her art examines the shared experience of being an individual within a broader social system. Li’s perspective as an East Asian woman living in the West shapes her art, merging Chinese identity with the migrant experience to reflect a sense of “in-betweenness.”
Hongxi Li’s ‘QUANTA‘ was exhibited 19–23 June 2024 during the Sculpture MA Degree Show at Royal College of Art, London.
Bio text by Vanessa Murrell
How would you explain the ‘QUANTA’ sculpture to someone unfamiliar with it? How does the performance interrelate with it?
‘QUANTA’ is my first large-scale outdoor sculpture, standing 4 metres tall and 3.6 metres wide, with a 2.1-meter high stage. Made of carbon steel and secured with 800 bolts, it weighs nearly one ton. It was shown at the Royal College of Art MA Sculpture Degree Show in London in June.
The name ‘QUANTA’ comes from ‘quantum,’ which means tiny units of measurable things in science, like energy. While the sculpture is huge, the name highlights how small elements can influence larger power dynamics.
During the show, I activated the sculpture with a daily 20-minute silent and static performance. The stage created a power dynamic between me, ‘security guard’ and the audience below. I performed as Jolene, a character who, without the ability to speak (or move), communicated with the audience through her gaze.
How did you handle the financial and logistical challenges of such a large project? Any memorable moments?
I was lucky to have HY Industry, a bridge-building company from China, sponsor the sculpture. It was interesting to work with a mass production company on an individual artistic project, and navigate both their constraints and strengths.
Managing everything myself was tough. I had to learn on the go, deal with tight deadlines, and meet various standards, like Heath and Safety.
Challenges included coordinating with the institution, dealing with shipping delays and a broken truck. Two weeks before the show, a tutor suggested making a Plan B, but I decided to go all-in without one. I learned a lot, like the different types of trucks and heavy weight lifting.
A memorable moment was when the ship carrying the sculpture was delayed. I even consulted a family shaman about the ship’s arrival. After a prayer session and a prediction from the shaman, the ship arrived on the exact date he gave me, despite what the tracking website said. It felt magical and showed me to think beyond just logical solutions.
I had tremendous support from my tutors, including Sarah Staton, Melanie Jackson, and Ivan Morison. I appreciate all the advice and support I received along the way!
What influences shaped its design? Any specific references?
‘QUANTA’ blends elements of a monument, watchtower, gateway, and speech stage. While it doesn’t directly reference a specific historical architecture, its form evokes various power symbols. People have compared it to a pyramid, a doberman dog, a Star Wars spaceship, and Rapunzel’s tower—all representing different aspects of power and control.
I was interested in researching totalitarian power dynamics, so I looked at post-WWII Soviet architecture. The Spomenik Monument Database by Donald Niebyl provided fascinating insights into Yugoslavian monuments that memorialise the past while shaping future beliefs. These references led me to explore how Soviet-era aesthetics and ideologies influenced Chinese architecture and ideologies, deepening my understanding of these dynamics.
For ‘QUANTA,’ using bolted joints gave it an industrial feel from the past, while the gateway element suggested an entry into the future. The sculpture’s junction-like location mirrored traditional monument settings.
I also drew inspiration from Jeremy Bentham’s Panopticon for control and surveillance, Paul Virilio’s Bunker Archeology, and George Orwell’s 1984, which was recommended to me by my friend, artist Jay Slyce.
How does it balance a direct message with ambiguity?
‘QUANTA’ can be seen as political, but I’m more interested in exploring underlying societal issues rather than reacting to specific events. I’m not a fan of the news and prefer to dig into the root causes.
The sculpture itself provides a direct sense of power, while the performance disempowers Jolene, who is speechless and immobile on stage. This invites the audience to reflect on power dynamics without any explicit propaganda.
Tell us about Jolene, the female character in your performance. Who is she and how did she come about?
Jolene serves as a focal point for my sculptures, with her repressed traits woven into my work’s narrative. Jolene first appeared in my work YES YES YES (2023), which explores control and rebellion, while Sandcastle (2024) addresses land possession and urbanisation.
I named her after my high school English teacher in China, who was the only one with an English name. For me, ‘Jolene’ represents a fantasy of being in a foreign country.
I always play Jolene myself because it’s important to extend the East Asian and female identity to her, reflecting someone who’s migrated to a Western country.
Jolene embodies someone within the system. She’s dressed in corporate attire with a restrictive hairstyle, evoking the look of a typical salary worker. Her outfit suggests a repressed lifestyle but allows her to blend into any work environment, be that a headmistress, an air hostess, or a receptionist for instance.
So, in a way, QUANTA is Jolene’s new job.
I’m really thankful to my tutor Whisky Chow. I had previously worked with external performers to activate my works, but after attending her performance workshop at school, I began exploring the possibility of becoming a performer myself.
What are the key symbols in this work?
The performance and sculpture feature five key elements: a male guard, a stopwatch, a ladder, Jolene, and a tower. Each plays a role in exploring power dynamics.
The stopwatch (the smallest item), hidden in the guard’s pocket, represents the invisible systems controlling the performance. The guard controls the ladder, which affects Jolene’s freedom to move up and down the tower.
I wanted all the performers to be East Asian, and placing a female figure at what seemed to be the top of the power structure added an interesting dynamic. Minghao Sun, Byungkeun Min and Seongjun Kim captured the role of the male guard very well, and I am very grateful to them for doing so!
How do silence and stillness contribute to the performance?
Silence in the performance avoids direct verbal messages, keeping Jolene from expressing herself. This makes her facial expressions appear repressed and intensifies the atmosphere.
The only sound is the metallic clang of the ladder, placed by the security guard on the sculpture for Jolene to access its stage, which echoes like a church bell. To me, this sound symbolises an abstract form of command.
Silence and stillness simplify the performance, with the intention of making the audience focus on minor details.
During rehearsals, I found that gazing became a crucial form of interaction when everything else was stripped down. I was really lucky to work with Sarah Daukes, who helped refine the performance by teaching me about weight, speed, and strength in movement.
Audiences had the option of viewing the performance from the front as well as the dynamic happening in the back, causing conflicts and complexity. As an additional layer, the school had hired security guards to be located at the entrance gate which also happened to coincide with my work location, so both real and performance guards were guarding my work.
What are you thinking and feeling when you’re on top of the monument? Your face seems to show a mix of divinity and vulnerability, yet also authority.
Because the sculpture is monumental, every performance with it is highly immersive. Despite performing twice a day, Jolene never falls into autopilot mode. Performing it in many ways reinforced the idea that monuments and architectural spaces evoke specific emotions and beliefs in us without our realisation.
Jolene’s main role on top of the monument is to ‘control’ the crowd with an image of authority. At the same time, she feels vulnerable and disempowered, trapped without a sense of time. As she watches people leave, she yearns for the same freedom but is unable to obtain it by herself.
During the opening night, it was Jolene’s first time stepping inside the monument and watching a large crowd. It was an overwhelming power statement. She felt shocked, vulnerable, and even broke into tears, yet she tried to maintain the role she was forced into.
What was it like to perform intensely over five days? Did each day differ?
It is so unpredictable to perform outdoors in public. Every crowd is different (and the weather varies each day too), which makes each performance different.
Once, the audience was very interactive. They quickly noticed the ‘CCTV’ style gazing. Some people walked in front of the stage to provoke the gaze and filmed with their cameras. It felt like the cameras were watching me back, adding another layer to the surveillance and power dynamic.
On the same day, in the same performance slot, a woman stepped closer to the stage and gazed at me. Based on my previous performances, it was rare for someone to come close to the monument. As Jolene, I felt for the first time that someone might want to talk to me, maybe even save me.
In many ways, the audience were performers too. Their reactions to surveillance, power, and control were an important part of the work.
How did the demolition of the sculpture impact you?
I had a very insightful conversation with Linsey Young, Curator of British Contemporary Art at Tate Britain, which made me think about sustainability and material possession in the arts, especially for large public sculptures.
The demolition of the tower was planned as part of the project. It seemed like Jolene had her escape or revenge from ‘QUANTA.’ The monumental sculpture was displayed for five days, emphasising how fragile societal structures can appear and disappear overnight. It also reflects the transient nature of material possession in the arts.
Personally, it was a very difficult process for me. I spent time grieving. However, it made me braver in accepting, letting go, and moving on to the next project.
What’s next for you?
Helen Neven invited me to do a solo show at Neven Gallery, opening at the end of September. I’m grateful for this opportunity because Helen has been very supportive since the beginning of my career, showing up for all my past shows and projects. Plus, she’s one of the coolest, most creative, and down-to-earth people to work with.
The solo show will continue the ‘Sandcastle’ project, focusing on urbanisation and property development issues. We’re creating a new body of work specific to the gallery’s space and location and I’m excited to be collaborating with an actual Chinese architectural firm on it. Though it feels like a natural evolution in my practice, I am hoping it will take people by surprise!