Koi Neng Liew | Pollywog

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Koi Neng Liew, “Pollywog,” 2024

(courtesy of the Gallery)

Pollywog presents a new body of work by ceramicist Koi Neng Liew. Here, he turns his attention to axolotls — a species of aquatic salamanders that have the ability to regenerate missing limbs. Meditating on this special ability in connection to cycles of loss and healing, Liew offers up these baby-faced amphibians as potential conduits for reimagining resiliency and transformation in moving with grief.

A pollywog, or tadpole, exists in the intermediary stage of an amphibian’s life cycle between birth and maturity. It is a liminal phase in which the creature’s body is in a state of flux — sprouting new limbs, creating organs from scratch, and miraculously regenerating any part of their body lost along the way. It is a stage of great malleability and potential.

Because axolotls do not advance into adulthood, and instead reach full maturity in the pollywog stage, they retain their regenerative abilities and youthful character. Through the work, Liew asks where resiliency could be drawn from by exploring what it means to hold fast to youth. Playing with the idea of malleability, he grafts mismatched appendages and absurd colours onto his axolotls, and in doing so, emphasizes their potential for transformation.

Pollywog is a reflection on loss and growth. With the sudden appearance of a hole, there is the choice to refill it to its previous perimeter, or an opportunity to spill past its contours, creating a new shape in the process.

Esplanade Project Space is located along the exterior façade of the Esplanade Arts & Heritage Center, along 2nd Street and 4th Avenue, and is comprised of four vitrines. This unique and accessible exhibition space is dedicated to presenting work by individuals and groups based-in or with strong ties to Medicine Hat. The exhibitions reflect the diversity and richness of our city’s arts and heritage and aim to cultivate vibrancy within the downtown core.