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Lim Zeharn



Free as a Bird (should) (2022)

15 deconstructed polyresin magnets, biohazard specimen bags
Free as a Bird (should) is an installation of 3D hornbills extracted from tourist magnets, alongside remnants in biohazard bags. Inspired by the irony of Sarawak’s official nickname as the Land of Hornbills, and its current lack thereof due to illegal poaching, magnets with their false picturesque scenes of man cohabiting with nature are dismembered.
Subjecting them through destructive processes using tools reminiscent of the red ivory trade, the hornbill characters are instead being extracted, conserved, and set free on their own. With all other parts sealed away, the work underscores the damage caused by human presence and activities on biodiversity.


Dangerously Close (2022)



Printed articles on paper, polyresin magnets
Dangerously Close presents a collection of online news article printouts, individually held up by assorted decorative hornbill magnets from Sarawak. Bold story headlines covering the unfortunate reality of hornbills in peril and their trafficking forms the content of the papers.

Unwaveringly performing their function in glorious poses, these magnetic feathered creatures stare out blankly, naive and completely unperturbed by their vulnerable circumstances. The presentation takes reference from notices on fridges which serve as jarring reminders, framing these articles, with renewed urgency, as a quiet plea for help.


Something Fishy (2022)



Modified dried fish fillet snack packet
Something Fishy is a packet of hand-woven 'Dahfa' brand dried fish fillet snack. As a product manufactured only in Sarawak, Malaysia, I saw visual parallels between the snack's contents and the traditional weaving craft of the local indigenous people.
The tasty loose strands, interlaced at right angles repeatedly, constructs a tightly knitted sheet with a natural, earthy appearance. Akin to the textures of raw woven rattan or bamboo fibers, the perishable work, kept in its iconic packaging, is a reimagining of the classic childhood snack with greater
sociocultural significance.



Lim Zeharn is a Singaporean artist whose works range from designed objects to kinetic sculptures and video performances. His practice employs wit and absurdity to examine existential feelings and the anxieties borne out of modern living. He studied at the School of the Arts (SOTA) and is a recent BA(Hons) Fine Arts graduate from LASALLE College of the Arts, Singapore.
He has been featured in group exhibitions and festivals internationally across Singapore, China, Japan, South Korea, Germany, the United States, and the United Kingdom. For his work, Zeharn was awarded the Winston Oh Travel Award 2022 and named a finalist in the Alpine Fellowship Arts Prize 2022, and IMPART Awards 2019.