Lives and works in Copenhagen.
Olivia Rode Hvass graduated from the Jutland Art Academy in 2021 and attended Corrie van Eijk-Dokter’s Masterclass in TC2-weaving in Holland 2021. Olivia Rode Hvass works in a sculptural interdisciplinary field that encompasses drawing, textiles, found and made objects, and installation art. Their work unfolds from a critique of, and interest in, world-building in relation to the narratives (mythology, reality, fairy tales) that shape the society we have grown up with and been raised by.
Hvass has previously exhibited at various Danish platforms and institutions such as Kunsthal Aarhus, Kunshal 6100, Kunsthal NORD, Sydhavn Station, Ladder Space, Archway Nightlands Connectior, Skovgaard Museum and Tranen. They made their international solo exhibition debut at 00.00 in Seoul in the autumn of 2023 and looks forward to exhibitions at Kunstmuseum Brandts(DK), Rum46(DK) and Le Bicolore - The Danish House in Paris, in the autumn of 2024.
Olivia Rode Hvass, Can't seem to get out of my head.. out of my bed..., 2022 © Jesper Olsen
The unicorn is a mythological and magical animal whose repeated appearances in medieval art reflect the fascination with which it was viewed and the importance of the moral and symbolic values associated with it, ranging from freedom to purity. Many centuries later, in the 1980s, the unicorn lent some of its physical characteristics to My Little Pony figurines and children’s toys, which have a clear gender identity. The advance of time and the reappropriation of legends for business purposes has led to some radical changes to iconography and symbolism. We go from the frightened young virgin of the Middle Ages to the perfect little girl who absolutely loves horses.
Olivia Rode Hvass’ tapestry was woven digitally and was inspired by the Chasse à la Licorne (the Hunt of the Unicorn), a series of seven tapestries produced between 1495 and 1505, which depict the capture of a unicorn by a group of squires and horsemen. A critical feminist reading is that of a celebration of virility and male domination over beings and things. The materials are the same, but the stories are different and feature different heroes and heroines. The cartoon-like visual style enables the artist to subvert the story of the hunt and her unicorn manages to free itself.
