False Idol: Sian Fan

False Idol is a new installation by Somerset House Studios member, Sian Fan, exploring how magic, mysticism and worship co-exist within our highly mediated, consumer-driven world. Fan combines meticulous craftsmanship with the visual language of pop culture; the work draws on cultural symbols such as the glittering sheen of pop starlets, the murky realms of Internet folklore and the raw presence of the shamanic figure, imagining a space where the spiritual and the artificial begin to blur.

The installation sits under theatrically suspending three handmade garments against the illumination of an artificial night sky. Fan mixes contemporary and historical cultural references, from TikTok creators performing tarot readings with Pokémon cards, to Chinese fortune knots and video game talismans. Together, these elements suggest how people today seek out mystical experiences through the tools and aesthetics of popular media. 

Sian Fan will activate the garments through a live performance on 14 May. The performer will slowly shed layers of the costume before ascending an aerial silk and performing a spotlighted sequence that combines the spectacle of pop stardom with the intensity of spiritual ritual.

Sian Fan is an interdisciplinary artist whose work combines movement, the female body and technology to explore embodiment, spirituality and human experience in the digital age. She works across mediums, combining the physical and the virtual through sculpture, performance, animation, moving image and virtual and augmented reality.

Where: Somerset House, London, WC2R 1LA

When: 30 April – 12 July 2026

Live Performance: 14 May 2026

Further Information: Sian Fan

Venue details