SURF_ by Hansel Tai

Artist list

Hansel Tai

Hansel Tai is a studio artist based in Tallinn, Estonia. His work investigates queer culture in the Post-internet Epoch, where the natural is overshadowed by the body cult, deformation, subcultural signs and high-gloss metal, and hyperstition is materialised into fetish objects.

The works in the exhibition reconstruct acts of love hunting and queer cruising, reassembling them into tactile forms that question how technology mediates desire, identity, and perception.
Ultimately, SURF_ proposes a reflection on queer courtship—of desire, materials, and memory—where mundane materials are reimagined as carriers of both personal and collective histories, oscillating between decay and renewal, hurtling toward a sharp end.


Hansel Tai obtained a Bachelor's degree in Art Jewelry from the Central Academy of Fine Arts in Beijing in 2016. He then pursued further studies at the Gerrit Rietveld Academie in Amsterdam and earned a Master's degree with distinction (Cum Laude) from the Estonian Academy of Arts in 2019.
He has exhibited internationally, with notable showcases at the Museum of Art and Design (New York), Het Nieuwe Instituut (Rotterdam) and FRAME 2017 (Munich). He is the winner of the Enjoia’t MISUI Award (2019). His works are part of the permanent collections at Museum Arnhem and CODA Museum in the Netherlands. In addition, he served as a guest lecturer and critic in the Jewelry + Metalsmithing Department at the Rhode Island School of Design.

The exhibition is supported by the Swedish Arts Council, and the project by the Cultural Endowment of Estonia.


Opening Reception: Thursday, 27th of August 17.00 - 19.00
Opening hours: Mo-Fr 11.00 - 18.00, Sa 11.00 - 15.00