Regina Hann: Coral-istic Abstraction as a Language of Coexistence

Coexistence as a Spiritual Necessity for Hann

Installation view of Between Realms: Sky, Earth, and Sea group exhibition at the AAAF. Photo Credit: Mingjun Jiang

Regina Hann’s showing of recent works at the Asian & American Art Foundation (AAAF) in Chelsea is a spectacle of vibrant colors, detailed texture, and wonderful forms that hint at the feminine divine concealed within the motif of the corals. Hann has moved away from positioning her work with an environmental message, and she is instead pursuing a more formalist and simultaneously spiritual and existential language of abstraction based on a composite language of collage and mixed media. Working with a highly diverse range of media and materials, such as acrylic mediums, mica, broken stones, glass bits, glitter, paper, fiber, and filaments, Hann pushes her paintings to their limits in terms of the material investigation and the language of abstraction. 

Hann’s newer body of work has come about through an earnest and labored research on painting, abstraction and materiality involving mixed media application. Each material carries a unique personality that can best convey a particular feeling or contribute to a specific image or language. The extension of the filaments, the clumping of acrylic mediums and paper, and the translucency and opacity of the paint layers all facilitate the dialogue of Hann’s paintings as a rich ecosystem of abstract and visual elements. 

Lingering Light(2026), mixed media relief painting, 34.5 x 19.5 inches

No longer just a representation or interpretation of corals, which were the starting point of Hann’s paintings, the works have evolved towards a realm of spiritual attainment through the exploration of a special kind of materiality. This materiality is neither seductive nor subservient to the commercial requirements, but it is reflective of Hann’s inner spirituality and sincere longing for coexistence and harmony. 

Hann’s voice in abstraction has always been generous and giving, facilitating friendships between colors that should clash in opposition in theory and forging unions and alliances between proximal and distant forms within the composition. But this time, the new works are much more striking because the application of colors and materials is much more controlled and thoughtfully executed. There is a greater sense of restraint in Hann’s paint and material application, in which a bright or vibrant color or detail is used sparingly to achieve the most ideal and concise feeling of visual harmony. The highlights, mid tones, and the shadows cohere together to achieve a dynamic yet nuanced image. The colors are not too strong or saturated, but there is a sense of clarity to the imagery in Hann’s works. If equated to a musical composition, the only elements absent would be the drums that set strong rhythms. The painting is much more ethereal and organic rather than following a set tempo or caricaturist repetition of forms.

Conception(2026), mixed media on shaped panel, 23 x 18.5 inches

Hann’s shaping of the canvases or panels in her recent works is another advancement in her painting practice, which are no longer rectilinear but are now organically reformed spaces, where the edge informs the inner content and vice versa. The entire painting becomes a breathing organism or a living system that is organically animated through the relationship of colors and patterns, buildup of texture and surface via the material application, and the collective consciousness of the coral-istic forms. The entire painting points to the central symbolism or metaphor of an organism from the edges of the picture plane to the content within the picture  itself, which is no longer a picture but a low-relief sculpture or sculptural painting. This evolution must be attributed to a greater sense of clarity and intention within Hann’s art making and ideation process.

Emergence (2026), mixed media on shaped panel, 28 x 21 inches

Evolution and growth are essential parts of an artist’s career and trajectory. While Hann has depicted a complete cycle of life in the corals from birth to decay, the artist is on a relentless path of transformative change and learning that will allow her to pivot to an elevated plane of visual expression. As Hann transitions from an environmentalist-themed portraits of corals to a more formal exercise and investigation of painting in terms of the language of abstraction, her spiritual powers and perspectives emanate more strongly from her inner consciousness. 

The artist may have thought that she is making her last stand by pursuing the subject matter of corals as a reflection of her own feminine identity, but she ends up giving birth to precious paintings that carry great authenticity and spiritual resonance. 

The theme of coexistence without spiritual connotation feels gullible, but coexistence that stems from a spiritual necessity promises us humans a much brighter and more prosperous future. The artist paints as a mode of prayer for the collective wellbeing of humanity. 

(Artists: Regina Hann, HyunSook Moon, and Michael Park)

Full Bloom(2026), mixed media relief painting, 32 x 25.5 inches