Lucy Liu's Shunga-Inspired Paintings Explore Loneliness at ACCA Melbourne

Lucy Liu, an accomplished actor and artist, elaborates on her large-scale erotic paintings inspired by Shunga, with three pieces featured at the Australian Centre for Contemporary Art (ACCA) in Melbourne. These works are part of the group exhibition titled 'Are You Lonely Tonight? I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry,' which runs until August 30. This exhibition marks the beginning of ACCA's Art and Emotion series, set to examine various emotional experiences over the next two years. Liu's artworks—En cachette, Je suis. Envois-moi., and Moi et les autres—explore intimacy, taboo, and desire, stemming from her upbringing in a context where discussions about sex were absent. She reflects on how this silence fostered feelings of loneliness and ignorance, which she aims to challenge through her art. Additionally, Liu notes the impact of technology on loneliness, as people often focus on their devices in social situations. She believes that art can express both personal and shared experiences beyond conscious awareness. Having started her artistic journey as a child and later studying at the New York Studio School, Liu contrasts the solitary process of painting with the collaborative nature of acting. She recently completed filming for the series 'Superfakes' and intends to return to ACCA for a solo exhibition in 2028.