Blurring boundaries

Posted May 14, 2024

Shoalhaven Regional Gallery, 11 May – 06 July 2024.

Step into the world of Chinese-Australian multimedia artist Tianli Zu as she presents an immersive exhibition delving into the stories of Chinese migrants who arrived in the Shoalhaven region in the 1820s.

Zu’s hybrid methodology is a metaphor for the rich history and experiences of Chinese migrants in Australia, highlighting the inseparable relationship between humankind and the environment.

Through a mixture of installation, drawing, painting, light projection, and her signature hand-cut paper works, Zu beautifully captures themes of identity, belonging, and cultural heritage intertwined with the Australian landscape. Experience the striking interplay between light and shadow, yin and yang, east and west.

Tianli Zu, 2024. Gosangs’ Fishing Paradise (Detail). Handout mulberry paper, watercolour 220 X 86 cm

Blurring Boundaries explores the stories of Chinese migrants who came to the Shoalhaven region in the 1820s. Zu delves into themes of identity, belonging, and cultural heritage in the context of the Australian landscape, sharing fragments of memories collected during her interviews and reimagines the past through her interdisciplinary techniques.

Blurring Boundaries is on show at Shoalhaven Regional Gallery 11 May – 06 July 2024.
Find more of Zu’s work on Instagram

Tianli Zu, 2024. New Tale: The eight Immortals crossing the sea (Detail). Hand-cut mulberry paper, watercolour. Eight panels 200 x 100cm

Natalie McDonagh

Natalie McDonagh PhD is a designer, artist and facilitator. Her multi-faceted practice is a form of creative meditation nurturing mind, heart and well-being. Her workspace and venue for public events sits at the edge of Jervis Bay National Park. For more about Natalie and her work visit her website Ecstatic Armour.