Liu Shuai's Interspecies Collaborations at Shanghai Biennale
Liu Shuai, hailing from Shandong province in China, produces multimedia pieces that delve into the connections between humans and nature, focusing on themes such as mortality, corporeality, nostalgia, and power. His temporary studio at VILLA tbh was unveiled to the public during the 15th Shanghai Biennale (2025–26) as part of the City Projects initiative. Situated in the Shanghai Botanical Garden, the studio showcased The Kiss (2025), an interactive installation developed in collaboration with bees. This piece incorporates bamboo stalks, drilled by carpenter bees from historic neighborhoods, repurposed into functional instruments. It honors the pollinators’ nesting habits, illustrating life cycles in a poetic partnership between the artist and the insects, reflecting Liu's childhood experiences with bug collecting and pet care in a vision of a utopia devoid of anthropocentrism.
Key facts
- Liu Shuai was born in Shandong province, China.
- His multimedia practice explores interspecies dynamics through mortality, corporeality, nostalgia, and power.
- During the 15th Shanghai Biennale (2025–26), his temporary studio at VILLA tbh was open to the public.
- The studio was part of the biennale's City Projects.
- The studio was located within the Shanghai Botanical Garden.
- The Kiss (2025) is an interactive installation co-created with bees.
- The work uses bamboo stalks punctured by carpenter bees, collected from old neighborhoods.
- The Kiss commemorates pollinators burrowing into stems to shelter and nurse their offspring.
Entities
Artists
- Liu Shuai
Institutions
- VILLA tbh
- Shanghai Biennale
Locations
- Shandong province
- China
- Shanghai
- Shanghai Botanical Garden